Lombax Effect
by Drell Warrioress
Summary: A mass relay is found in Polaris and Ratchet & Clank find Nefarious up to evil yet again. With Commander Shepard's help, they must chase Nefarious across the Milky Way and stop him from successing in his mysterious plan. But he's also working for Saren. Will there be enough time for the heroes to stop them from unleasing the Reapers? Involves mild violence and mass humour. LIs TBA
1. Discovery

_**This is my first crossover story that is not a one-shot and I'd like to say that "Ratchet & Clank" and "Mass Effect" are probably the best sci-fi games of all time. I love both game franchises equally and I hope everyone enjoys reading this story as much as I enjoy writing it. The location marked in bold will be identified as "city, planet, galaxy," or "planet, system, galaxy." **_

_**Be aware, thought, there may be spoilers for those who have little to no knowledge of "Ratchet & Clank Future: Tools of Destruction," "Ratchet & Clank Future: A Crack in Time," the Ratchet & Clank comic by DC Comics, or "Mass Effect 1" Proceed with caution when necessary, and be glad your robotic companions are here to help you; just be sure that those robotic companions are not Geth. **_

_**"Ratchet & Clank" is owned by Insomniac Games, High Impact Games and Sony Computer Entertainment America (2002-present). **__**"Mass Effect" is owned by BioWare and EA Games (2007-present). All rights reserved. **_

_**Enjoy!**_

* * *

><p><strong>Lombax Effect—A "Ratchet &amp; Clank" and "Mass Effect" Crossover<strong>

**Meridian City, Igliak, Polaris**

On a clear day, where hovercars zoomed by near dozens of neon-lit skyscrapers, many people in Meridian City, including those from Lumonopolis, have come to hear a special announcement from their galactic president. He has been sent reports of a strange object floating at the edge of the Cerulean Sector by several Polaris recon officers and President Copernicus Qwark was the only one who they believed would give out the lecture of this discovery.

The heroic duo, Ratchet and Clank, have also been told to come to hear of this, despite their unorthodox friendship with the wannabe hero. They were standing at the front of the audience, waiting for Qwark to come up on stage to present his speech. Ratchet could see the two news reporters Kip Darling and Pepper Fairbanks being filmed with their report at a far corner near the stairs up to the stage.

"Today," began Pepper. "We're reporting live from Meridian City as Galactic President Copernicus Qwark is making his way to give out his lecture of an extraordinary discovery at the Cerulean Sector."

Kip took his turn with his microphone in hand. "That's right, Pepper. Galactic scouts have reported to the president of a strange object orbiting the sector, but the station uncovered holds an origin unlike any other we know today."

Ratchet overheard this and looked to his synthetic friend. "Hey, Clank. Do you know anything about weird-looking stations out in this galaxy?"

"I have searched the holo-net on that, Ratchet," Clank answered. "However, if the station does not resemble anything known in this galaxy, or even those in the Solana and Bogon Galaxies, perhaps it was left by someone from a galaxy unlike those we have already visited."

"Hmm… You could be right on that, buddy," Ratchet acknowledged. Seeing Qwark come up to the stand on stage, standing straight with multiple kinds of microphones held at the top, Ratchet and the rest of the audience became silent before the galactic president began his lecture to his citizens after clearing his throat.

"Citizens of the Polaris Galaxy," he started. "As all of you may know, there has been a very strange-looking station found in the Cerulean Sector. None of us know who works there or how their technology can be used. Because we have little to no knowledge of this, I will be sending out a research team with the brightest and nerdiest minds this galaxy has so that we can dig up these unknown secrets and more. There will also be volunteers coming from here, the Solana Galaxy and the Bogon Galaxy—people like Big Al from "Big Al's Robo Shack and Gaming Superstore," Mr. Fitzwidget from Megacorp, and even my assistant warmonger Vorn. We will begin work tomorrow, and this project of mine will not be done until we have found all the station's mysterious facts!"

There was an applause from everyone in the audience, with Ratchet and Clank only clapping their hands lightly with respect, but also with hints of doubt in their mind and memory banks.

* * *

><p>Ratchet piloted Aphelion over to Qwark's large freighter with Clank in the passenger's seat. They called Talwyn to come with them and see if she would have any theories about the strange station itself, as she did hold the necessary expertise on ancient or pre-war architecture and items, so she kindly accepted their offer. But in case something went wrong, she believed it would be wise to bring her two warbot caretakers, Cronk and Zephyr.<p>

By the time they docked at Qwark's freighter, theirs truly greeted them excitedly and gave them a tour around the ship, while going so far as to try and describe each scientist's job in their research on the unidentified station.

From the observation room, Ratchet, Clank and Talwyn saw the station at a short distance through the window. The station was huge, formed in the form of an artistic arrow with a sort of gyrosphere mechanism, the two rotating rings spinning rhythmically around an enormous blue, ethereal orb emitting an amazing type of energy for the entire station.

Ratchet was in awe. "Wow... Man, that thing is huge."

"This is amazing," Talwyn said. "How come no one's ever seen this before now?"

"They did," Qwark answered in an overly enthusiastic way. "They found it only weeks ago."

This followed with a several seconds of dead silence until the Lombax hero groaned as he slammed his gloved palm to his forehead. "She meant before that, Qwark..."

Suddenly, a crackling sound was heard over the ship's intercom as another starship—not like those belonging to Ratchet, Talwyn or to any of their other friends—came into view from the wide window.

"Hello, Mr. President!" a familiar, maniacal voice was heard when the crackling stopped.

Everyone turned to see who was in the starship, until the hatch in the cockpit opened to reveal two old, robotic foes. They simply don't know when to stay out of trouble.

"Nefarious..." Ratchet muttered, clenching his hand in a fist. "I thought he was long gone back when he was after the Great Clock."

Qwark quickly put on his metaphorical mask of bravery on as he said, "Well, it's time they learned a lesson they should've gotten a long time ago." He then grabbed a small microphone from its case near the rim of the window. "Listen to me, Dr. Nefarious. Whatever it is you're here for, you're not going to get it, not whilst I have my bodyguards here!"

It was Clank's turn to perform to imitate a face-palm before looking up to the hero wannabe with his synthetic features showing a frown. "Qwark, we are not here to be bodyguards. But perhaps Nefarious has some interest to this mysterious station you have been researching."

The robot villain simply cackled lightly at Clank's suggestion. "You think you know everything there is about it, do you, you dimwit? I'm afraid I got here before you incompetent squishies came by. Your weak minds can't even figure out what this is really used for! Just watch as I prepare myself and Lawrence to be transported to a new galaxy, using the Mass Relay!"

"We do certainly deserve a nice holiday, sir," Lawrence said over his master's laughing.

Ratchet was in a state of shock, confusing and urgency. "What, 'Mass Relay'? Qwark, we have to go after them, quickly!"

* * *

><p>Ratchet, Clank, Qwark and Talwyn got in their rightful starships and followed Dr. Nefarious, thrusters running at optimum power, to try and stop him from getting close to the "Mass Relay," as the mad doctor called it. He had some plan involved with it, and it couldn't be anything good compared to his past attempts of becoming an unstoppable villain.<p>

There were times when Qwark had defeated Nefarious when the robotic menace used to be an organic being, and even during his first time as a robot due to an accident that would have been fatal for any organic. There were also times when Ratchet was in the picture and had stopped Dr. Nefarious from turning the entire Solana population into docile robotic slaves, and again when he wanted to turn back time for his own twisted goals.

And now he was going at it again, only this time it could be something almost as bad as his first confrontation with him, worse than his recent victory against him, or even something that was somewhere in-between those two plots.

Nefarious was now only a few dozen kilometres away from the Mass Relay's gyrosphere. With one quick movement of his hand whilst keeping the other on the flight stick, Ratchet was hitting Aphelion's thrusters to maximum power, not wanting to fall behind by even one metre from his greatest enemy.

"I'm picking up strange energy readings from the station," Aphelion chimed in. "It seems to be increasing in power as Dr. Nefarious is closing in."

"Then we'd better pick up the pace. Thanks, Aphelion." Ratchet put his communications line over to Talwyn's and Qwark's ships. "Qwark, Talwyn! We need to get to Nefarious quickly before he hits that..."—he was close to saying "station" before he resumed—"...that relay!"

But just as he finished, the starship they were chasing was given a web of blue electricity from the relay's orb, and the ship immediately went into light speed.

"That orb must have sent Nefarious to another system, or galaxy," Talwyn said to Ratchet on her communications line. "This could be our only chance to catch up to him!"

"What, we just get near that glowing orb and it gives us that electricity stuff to go somewhere else from here?" Ratchet felt a bit uneasy about it.

"I believe you may be right, Ratchet," Clank said.

"I have picked up the co-ordinates Dr. Nefarious used when he disappeared," Aphelion said. "However, these are not recognisable to those in this galaxy. They could belong to those from a different galaxy, but I cannot be certain of Dr. Nefarious' exact location."

The Lombax looked to his friend in the passenger's seat before taking a deep breath, calming his nerves. "OK. I think you guys may be right. Let do this."

"Full throttle!" Qwark called out on his line.

All three starships went passed the gyrosphere and same way Nefarious' ship did and they were soon gone from the Cerulean Sector. Wherever the Mass Relay would take them, Ratchet hoped that he wouldn't lose his long-time nemesis once they returned to regular speed.


	2. Eden Prime

**Lombax Effect—Chapter 2**

Light engulfed Aphelion as Ratchet piloting the ship past the Mass Relay, followed by Qwark and Talwyn. No one was certain of where the relay would take them, but they all had hints that it would lead them back to where Dr. Nefarious took off.

As the light dissipated around him, Ratchet took control of the steering sticks, trying to quickly take in what was around him. He soon had Aphelion flying at a slow speed so that he and Clank could look around to see where they were. More importantly, he was trying to find Nefarious' ship they were chasing after. Where was that crazy robot?

"Aphelion, where are we?" Ratchet asked.

"My navigation systems are unable to decipher our current location. It is possible the Mass Relay took us to an unknown galaxy. I detect no hostile ships nearby. Nefarious has gone"

"What about Talwyn and Qwark? Did they make it through?"

"I cannot locate their starship signatures for Captain Qwark or Miss Apogee. They could be elsewhere."

"This is unsettling," Clank commented, shaking his titanium-plated head. "Ratchet, if Talwyn and Qwark are not here with us, we could be alone out here—wherever we are."

The Lombax was beginning to worry a little. "OK, don't panic." He looked on Aphelion's radar to find something, a ship, a planet or another Mass Relay that could lead them back to Polaris. The third option would be stupid out of the other two. "Let's see... This isn't the first time we got stranded on a new galaxy. Remember back on Cobalia, where we got stranded?"

"Ratchet," Clank said to get his friend's attention. "That was when we were being chased by Tachyon three years ago. It would probably be best to send a distress beacon and hope for someone to pick it up and assist us."

"Do we even have any distress beacons with us?"

"Just one," Aphelion said with apparent hope. "Launching beacon now."

A beep was heard on the radar. Ratchet was not done with his worrying. They were stranded in an unknown galaxy with no signs of Talwyn or Qwark. They were supposed to be on Nefarious' trail when they left Qwark's freighter in Polaris' Cerulean Sector, and now he's gone to do what could pose a threat—if he planned on revenge, for the third time and counting.

"Well, I guess we've got nothing better to do," Ratchet declared. "I just hope we're not stuck for too long, though."

**Eden Prime, Milky Way**

A loud scream was heard from the reddened sky before a loud thud with clinks of metal came. On the grass, Nefarious was as flat as a metallic pancake before he popped back up and stood evenly, looking up to where his ship was last seen.

"Now, how am I supposed to get off this useless piece of rock?" he mumbled to himself in rage. Just when he went through the Mass Relay, he was almost holding for dear life (or in this case, in hope that his fusion circuits did not cross) with Lawrence beside him in his ship. Now, he was out and alone, and soon his enemies Ratchet, Clank and Captain Qwark would be wondering where he is and planning to hold him up until galactic authorities arrived to imprison him.

Over at a distance, a man came out from his white-plated shelter and stopped suddenly when seeing the strange synthetic in his sight. "What is that?" he asked himself.

Nefarious spun around to see the man and was met with a look of fear. The mad scientist's glare only intensified a slight bit with every set of ten seconds passing. "Who are you? What is this place and where can I find a transport hub?" were the only words he yelled out.

The man was startled and replied with hesitation, "My... name is Manuel. This... This is Eden Prime, a human colony. What are you?"

"You still haven't answered my last question, squishy!"

"Please, calm down! I'll tell you what you want to know! Just don't kill me. Please, I have a wife." Manuel was soon shaking as he spoke.

"Then where can I find a transport hub on this colony?"

"W-We don't have one, sir..."

Nefarious was soon filled with shock along with rage. "RAAAATTTTTCC—" His metallic body soon froze with a slight spark coming from his circuits inside. His angry look could still be seen even when he wasn't moving at all. That was until audio came from God-knows-where sounded through the area.

"Lance, I have a confession to make," a soft, high-toned female voice said.

"Janice, what has happened?" another voice said with a hint of concern, this one being male. "Your dress! How did you get it so muddy?"

"I wish it didn't appear like this, but I believe you do deserve an explanation," Janice answered.

Manuel's fear diminished as he was now swamped with confusion. He could see that the only thing moving from Nefarious was the little gear quickly going back and forth in its green, glass, egg-shaped head.

Before Manuel could go through new theories in his head, a huge shadow floated on the grass until he looked up to see a huge ship of an indescribable shape touch down on the colony's surface. The black shape emitted red electricity on its exterior, hinting to Manuel that it could be a threat. He ran back into his shelter, not wanting to be abducted or killed by whoever was going to come out of the ominous-looking ship.

"Dr. W-W-Warren! They're coming for us all!" While fleeing, Manuel bumps into a stack of crates that towered above him, causing a small toolbox from the very top to fall down on his head. "No! The dark ones have found me!"

Manuel staggers to recover his balance and slips into the shelter.

Meanwhile, Nefarious had finally returned to his senses to find the scientist missing in action. "Where did that squishy scurry off to?"

Suddenly, an electronic stuttering sound was heard at a distance.

Nefarious turned over to see a robot with an obscure-looking head with one flashlight as its eye. It's white coloured alloys and arms holding a sort of military-grade weapon has the scientist's anger replaced with wonder and intrigue.

Nefarious stared at the mysterious robot, as if trying to strip away its shell with his eyes. Out of nowhere, the egomaniacal robot flails his arms in the air while yelling, "Booga, booga, booga" in the hopes of provoking a reaction. The robot, however, tilted its head a little to the side and more electronic noises fill the air.

"What sort of a robot is that?" he asked himself calmly. He was soon walking idly to the robot he saw, trying to see what its purpose could be, and why it was here. He could turn this strange but unique machine into his minion.

"I'd step away from the armed Geth if I were you," a male voice said, two different tones set in one to create this voice.

Nefarious quickly turned around and looked frantically around to see where the voice was coming from. "Who's there? Show yourself! And what is a Geth?"

"Now, that's no way to talk to a Spectre." The voice was less quiet, but he did reveal himself from the shadows. There stood a turian, with armour plated in various silver-coloured metals. He had piercing blue eyes with a black fringe standing out to the rest of his silver face. "These Geth are very dangerous, and they would not hesitate to shoot you—that is, if you steer clear of them."

"Who are you, thinking you could outsmart Dr. Nefarious?" the scientist threatened menacingly.

The Spectre simply chuckled lightly to himself. "You're not from Eden Prime, now, are you? My name is Saren, and I lead these Geth synthetics.

Nefarious turns his back to Saren, and strolls back and forth in a straight line while mumbling to himself. "What? A squishy is commanding these 'Geth'? Interesting. If I can obtain this one's power, hmm... Then I can rule the galaxy as my own!"

Nefarious' insane outburst of evil laughter leaves both the Geth and Saren surprised.

"What's wrong with you?" Saren asked, uncomfortable by the colourful robot's comment.

"Don't you see, Saren?" Nefarious looked back at the turian Spectre, determination in his red-lit eyes. "These Geth, they are under your command. If we work together, we can rule the galaxy and kill anyone and anything that gets in our way!"

"True and true, but I have a mission. If you are willing to come and help, I would be obliged. There is a piece of Prothean technology uncovered from this dreaded colony, a beacon to be more precise. If I can upload the message engraved from it, I can leave and continue my journey for domination. You will have much to learn along the way, Dr. Nefarious."

Gunfire was heard around the entire area, bullet whizzing by at air-breaking speeds.

Talwyn was running as fast as she could with synthetic soldiers shooting her from behind, the bullets missing her by inches, thankfully. As she reached a boulder that would cover her, she drew out her pistol and aimed for the soldiers shooting at her whilst in cover. After several shots, one of them was thrown to the ground by the bullet's impact, its headlight quickly dimming to mark its death.

"What are these things?" Talwyn asked herself after shooting a second death-bot of unknown origin. Another few shots from her pistol and she now made a total of three kills.

The sound of gunfire increased, almost loud enough to deafen the Markazian's pointed ears. However, the bullets whizzed by in two opposing directions. Looking forward with her back still leaning on the boulder for cover, she saw three armoured soldiers—not the same as the ones who attacked her—firing rifles past her and at the synthetic hostiles. Throughout that period of twenty seconds, Talwyn had her eyes shut and her hands covered her ears.

Soon, the sounds of battle died out. Talwyn slowly lowered her hands and opened her eyes to see whether or not she was still in danger—she was not, for the moment.

"Hey, are you OK over there?" a husky male voice asked her. The pink-skinned female looked to see the three soldiers that took down her pursuers.

"Wait, she's not human," the woman in red and white armour commented. "What is she doing here?"

Talwyn was constantly looking towards the three soldiers, one of them was male, two female, all three of them human. "Uhh..." was all she said before quickly fixing her comment with "Would you three possibly know where we are right now?"

"This is Eden Prime, a human colony orbiting at the edge of the Terminus Systems," answered the woman in red and black armour, her voice at a slightly lower but smoother tone than from the other female soldier in red and white. "What's your name?"

"Talwyn Apogee. I-I'm really lost here and I was just running for my life by those strange death-bots. Is there a spaceport nearby?"

"Spaceport?" the male soldier said in confusion. "What are you talking about? There aren't any spaceports on human colonies."

The woman in red and black ignored her lieutenant's remark and looked back to the alien. "Do you remember where were you before the Geth attacked you?"

"Geth?"

"The synthetics we just gunned down."

"Oh! Well, I'm not sure. I was unconscious most of the time, but I woke up under some trees, and this sound of roaring engines from a distance—like it belonged to a starship of some kind."

"What did it look like, Miss Apogee?"

"It was black, looked like an enormous, metallic bug of some kind. I think I even saw some red sparks when it touched down to the ground. If you want, I could take you to the spot where I saw it."

The three human soldiers exchanged looks for a few seconds before turning back towards Talwyn.

"This ship you described might really help us, Miss Apogee. Thank you. Before my lieutenant and I landed here on the colony, it fell under attack by the Geth. Whoever's leading the assault may be a criminal, so the answers we're looking for may come from him. We were originally coming down to search and extract an ancient beacon the colonists found."

"I don't know anything about this beacon, but like I said, I was unconscious before I saw the ship. By the way, who are you guys?"

"I'm Commander Shepard. On my left is Gunnery Chief Ashley Williams, and the man on my other side is Staff Lieutenant Kaidan Alenko. You're welcome to join us, Miss Apogee."

"Thanks, Commander. And please, call me Talwyn, or Tal for short."

Kaidan turned to his commanding officer. "I think we better keep going through the colony, Commander."

"Roger, Lieutenant. We'll meet up with Nihlus along the way. Move out!"


	3. Mystery

**Lombax Effect—Chapter 3**

Ratchet and Clank had been waiting for almost two hours before they launched a distress beacon, hoping someone would pick them up and hopefully give them some answers about their current location. The two heroes were starting to slowly lose hope as time went by.

"How long has it been, Clank?" The Lombax asks while stifling a yawn.

"It has been two hours and seven minutes since the distress beacon was launched."

"Man, that long?" Ratchet decided to fiddle with the radio tuner to see if there were any music or news stations to listen to as they wait. When he got nothing but buzzes and static, he turned the radio off. "Why hasn't anyone found us yet?"

"I do not know, Ratchet." Clank answered solemnly. "Someone will eventually pick up our signal, and perhaps then we can learn where Qwark and Miss Apogee are."

Ratchet nodded to his friend, eyebrows lowered in concern. "I just hope Nefarious didn't get to them first..."

**Meanwhile, on Eden Prime**

Talwyn was trying to lead Shepard, Kaidan and Ashley through the grassy fields and to the spot where she woke up to see the mysterious ship she mentioned at their first encounter. Ashley had some questions about the type of species Talwyn was, but was cut off by her new commander when they were caught in another wave of Geth soldiers. By the time the field was clear, they found a shelter not far from the battlefield.

The gunnery chief, thinking there would be surviving colonists hiding inside, tried to open the door to the shelter, but it would not budge. She looked at the door and saw a small terminal to indicate that it was sealed shut. "It's closed. Security lock's engaged."

Talwyn looked at the encryption key for the door and then turned back to the woman in red and black armour. "There must be something that can unlock the door."

"I've got it," Kaidan volunteered. He walked past his commanding officer and the other two women before bringing up an orange object that lit around his left arm.

The Markazian looked to him with intrigue. "What's that on your arm, Lieutenant?"

"It's an omni-tool. I can hack through the security mechanism on the door and unlock it from there. But if I'm not careful, I'll have to override its system with omni-gel."

"I'm not sure my knowledge on technology would match yours, I'm afraid," the alien said with a nervous chuckle.

As Kaidan was hacking the door, Shepard had a question she was aching to ask Talwyn. "Miss Apogee, could I ask where you're from?"

"Uh, yeah, sure. I'm from the Cerulean Sector in the Polaris Galaxy."

"You're from a different galaxy?" Ashley asked in shock? "Commander, I know we use mass effect generators to travel faster than light speed, but this is unbelievable!"

"How did you get to this galaxy?" Shepard asked again before acknowledging the chief's comment.

"Actually, that's something I don't know. I was with a few of my friends and came across an old enemy of ours. He was going through this 'mass relay' station and we chased after him. After we got through, well... I think we might have gotten separated in the process."

Kaidan had successfully opened the door. "Looks like there's a lot to talk about back on the Normandy. Listen, mass relays are everywhere in this galaxy."

"Humans! Thank the maker!" a woman from inside the shelter called out in relief. She, along with a man beside her, came out from hiding. Both were clad in white suits with coloured lines around the torso and arms.

The man was quick to let the four in. "Hurry! Close the door, before they come back!"

"Don't worry," Shepard reassured them both. "We'll protect you."

The woman became more calm despite her partner's hysterical remark. "Thank you. I think we'll be OK now." She looked out through the nearby window then back to Shepard. "It looks like everyone's gone."

Ashley's eyes brightened slightly when looking at the white-clad woman. "You're Doctor Warren, the one in charge of the excavation. Do you know what happened to the beacon?

"It was moved to the spaceport this morning. Manuel and I stayed behind to help pack up the camp."

"Hold on a minute. You have a spaceport here?" Talwyn asked suddenly.

"Well, no, not really. It's more-or-less a transit area for monorails to transfer people to other areas around the colony. Who might you be?"

"I'm... Well, I'm not a human, but that doesn't mean I'm working for these dangerous robots."

"That's fine. You're with these three soldiers; it seems that anyone without a human on their side is a threat to the colony. When the attack came, the marines held them off long enough for us to hide. They gave their lives to save us."

"No one is saved. The age of humanity is ended. Soon, only ruin and corpses will remain."

Every woman looked to the man named Manuel. His comment obviously held great concern with a bit of delusional rambling mixed together. Warren was the first to ignore it, and then Shepard when she asked, "What else can you tell me about the attack?"

"It all happened so fast. One second we were gathering up our equipment. The next, we were hiding in the shed while the Geth swarmed over the camp. I even witnessed a lone synthetic who predicted the future."

"What was that synthetic talking about?"

"He... He demanded to answer him if there was a spaceport in the colony, but I said that there wasn't one. Then, he froze and... some pieces of audio started playing in his head—some people like Janice and Lance and ending up in a possibly drastic situation."

Talwyn was caught off guard when the names Lance and Janice were spoken. She had heard of those names before, but only from her two caretakers Cronk and Zephyr whenever they spoke about different types of technology they used before they were becoming "senile," as someone would say for someone getting old.

"That's really strange," Kaidan commented. "Talwyn, what do you make of this?"

She looked to the armoured lieutenant and quickly thought of an answer, trying not to make any implications that she'd been day-dreaming. "I think I know what Manuel might be talking about."

"You do?" the off-minded man asked.

The Markazian nodded. "Maybe this synthetic you mentioned was dropped off somewhere and he needed to find a way back to his station, or something."

_I'll have to ask Talwyn more about that later_, Shepard thought to herself. She faced Manuel once more, instantly changing the subject. "Did you notice a turian in the area?"

Manuel's frightful eyes were almost bulging out when the commander finished. "I saw him. The prophet, leader of the army. He was here, before the attack."

"That's impossible," Kaidan said in disbelief. "Nihlus was with us on the Normandy before the attack. He couldn't have been there."

"I'm sorry," Warren said. "Manuel is still a bit... unsettled. We haven't seen your turian. Manuel mentioned the synthetic earlier, but he was the only one who was it. We've been hiding in here since the attack."

"Can you tell me anything about the beacon?" Shepard asked.

"It's some type of module from a galaxy-wide communications network, remarkably well-preserved. It could be the greatest scientific discovery of our lifetime! Miraculous new technologies, groundbreaking medical advances—who knows what secrets are locked inside?"

"We have unearthed the heart of evil—awakened the beast, unleashed the darkness."

"Manuel, please! This isn't the time."

Talwyn took her turn to ask. "Warren, why is your assistant acting like it's the end of the galaxy?"

"You must excuse me, miss. Manuel has a brilliant mind, but he's always been a bit... unstable. Genius and madness are two sides of the same coin."

"I can imagine," the Markazian remarked in apparent agreement.

Manuel seemed to disagree, but not in the way that would strengthen an argument. "Is it madness to see the future, to see the destruction rushing towards us, to understand there is no escape, no hope? No, I am not mad. I'm the only sane one left!"

"I gave him an extra dose of his meds after the attack," Manuel's calm assistant assured.

Shepard had felt like time was quickly ticking away as she listened to Manuel's rambling, but she couldn't blame him—he may not be as sane as he claims, but at least it gave her an idea about the colonists' point-of-view on the attack. Soon, Shepard felt adrenaline heightening in her body. She had to hurry and catch up with Nihlus. "Manuel, I need to ask you something."

Warren shook her head. "It's probably best if you just left him alone."

_There's nothing left from them_. "Apogee, head back in front. Williams, keep your eyes out for more survivors. After our sweep's finished, take us to the spaceport."

"Yes, ma'am," the chief answered, taking out her assault rifle in case more Geth came close.

Nefarious spent his time talking about how he held a deep hatred towards his enemies while he, Saren and the Geth troopers were heading their way through a train transit. The Spectre himself even noted why he detested some organic species—namely humans—himself. Nefarious was a bit sceptical when he saw Saren murder a fellow Spectre named Nihlus, but the mad robot kept quiet about it. Despite his attempts to try and understand the Geth, the psychotic robot did not fall into the brink of his everlasting rage with glitches lurking inside.

"So, what are you looking for that can help you against these 'humans,' Saren?" Nefarious asked.

The turian didn't falter his pace but he was quick to answer. "There is an ancient beacon located somewhere in this transit station. The human colonists had uncovered it and believe it would give them acceptance to the galactic community. I, for one, wish to obtain whatever is held in the beacon and then destroy this colony before anyone else could learn of my—or in this case, our—plans. You can help me by eliminating anyone who would dare get in our way."

"Don't worry. I have a knack for annihilating imbeciles who believe they can stop me."

"You're in good hands, Doctor. Spectres are the top agents in the galaxy and they could plan anything without the need to negotiate to the public."

Before long, they reached a tall, metallic structure with a ethereal green aura engulfing it. Dr. Nefarious stopped in his tracks and stared at it in awe, an extremely rare emotion displayed on the doctor's cold steel face.

"There it is," Saren commented with determination. "The Prothean beacon."

Nefarious was immediately dumbfounded. "The what?"

"The beacon, created by the Protheans fifty thousand years ago. It is the key to searching for the Conduit. And once we find it, we will open the gates to the galaxy's saviours since the Protheans had disappeared fifty thousand years before this one." As he said this, Saren was walking closer to the beacon, then stopped as he saw the beacon's aura grow brighter.

"And what do those galactic saviours do, exactly?" Nefarious asked out of sheer curiosity.

"They cleanse the galaxy of all inferior beings existing in this galaxy. They are called... the Reapers."

As the four exited the shed, Talwyn looked up to a group of trees on a hill nearby, recognition kicking in through her mind. "Commander, this is it!" she called out as she ran up the hill. "That's where I woke up and saw the ship."

"And that was before you were attacked by the Geth, ma'am?" Kaidan asked.

"I think so. I remember where I was from the beginning and what I saw after I regained consciousness."

Shepard looked out from the top of the hill to see another empty field. Beyond that area was another covered in white pavement. This would most likely be the monorail transit Dr. Warren mentioned.

Suddenly, a loud rumbling noise emitted from around the colony, shaking the ground and catching the Markazian and three humans off-balance. As it became louder, a dark shadow appeared on the ground, until all four looked up to see the black, ominous ship Talwyn had seen. It was flying mid-range with red electricity emitted around the exterior.

Kaidan was the first to speak. "What is that? Off in the distance?"

"It's a ship. Look at the size of it!" Ashley exclaimed as she stared at the enormous ship.

"There! That's the ship I saw!" Talwyn called out, pointing to the black ship.

Everyone stared at the ship in awe. Talwyn was correct when she mentioned it being in the shape of a bug—it reminded Shepard of the cockroaches she once learned back at her old home on Mindoir when she was a teenager.

The red sparks covered the ship like bright ribbons with a lethal touch. The ship soon blasted off from the air and out into the red-lit sky, leaving nothing but a cloud of smoke and a noise that slowly died away in seconds. Shepard snapped back into her usual military form.

"Everyone, we need to focus on the beacon. If our attackers haven't taken it yet, then we still have a chance. We need to get the transit station. Move out!"


	4. The Beacon

_**Welcome back to Lombax Effect, and this chapter's the longest so far, so there will be a lot of things to be seen! Also, I have you guys to see what Shepard really looks like, save her hair, of course. Suggestions on future chapters are welcome in reviews or via private messsages.**_

* * *

><p><strong>Lombax Effect—Chapter 4<strong>

Talwyn, along with Commander Shepard, Lieutenant Alenko and Chief Williams, was on the monorail closing in on their arrival to the other side of Eden Prime.

Before that, the four had stumbled across a transit worker named Powell who became the luckiest man alive—all because he was sleeping on the job and witnessed one turian Spectre get shot by another unseen, not to mention overhear the Spectres' names. He also gave the three humans and the unknown female alien some grenades to help their fight against the Geth. Ashley was a bit harsh on him but Shepard kept the conversation cool, telling Powell that the grenades could help a great deal on their way to the Prothean beacon. It seemed that extensive conversation with the farmers like Cole and Blake was worth their luck.

The Markazian looked to Shepard. Even though the commander was wearing a helmet, Talwyn could see some distinct features about her. Shepard had pale skin, but she also had bright brown eyes, with eyebrows of nearly the same colour above them. Her lips were a light colour but not as pale as her skin, and light enough to tell that she didn't wear lipstick. Her nose was straight but it held a scar that ran across it from the top down to her right nostril. The scar was faint but it could be seen at a short distance, leaving a light pink line. As for the rest of her face, there was some dark eyeliner complimenting her brown irises and her cheeks didn't have a bright blush, which made her skin leave a little glow. Her jaw even seemed to make her face look like it was in the shape of a heart.

In a way, Shepard looked like the kind of soldier who could get someone's attention by not just her words. And if it were not for the scar running across her nose, she'd have had the face of an angel.

Shepard looked to Talwyn who was looking at her. She walked towards the alien, leaving her two comrades to each other on the other side of the monorail. "You OK, Talwyn?" she asked. "You seem nervous."

The Markazian nodded before replying. "I am, Commander. Before I ended up here in this colony, I was chasing after a robot with some close friends by my side. We were after Dr. Nefarious, an organic-hating scientist who's always up to trouble. My friends, Ratchet and Clank, knew him very well and so did our galactic president Qwark."

"What was Dr. Nefarious doing when you went after him?"

"I'm honestly not sure. All I know is, every single one of his plans involved torture and destruction. But now, he was going on about a Mass Relay we found at the edge of the Polaris Galaxy and he went off. And then there's the part of me ending up here and getting separated from my friends, like I mentioned before. I'm worried about Ratchet and Clank. I hope they're OK..."

Shepard nodded in understanding, but her eyes also held curiosity. "What can you tell me about Ratchet and Clank? What sort of friends were they?"

"Ratchet is a Lombax, probably the last of his own kind. Lombaxes were supposed to be those bipedal, feline aliens who were the protectors of the universe. Anyway, Ratchet's a skilled mechanic and can even hold off waves of enemies with heavy weapons. He's also a very good friend, and he never jokes around when it comes to dealing with enemies. Clank's a little robot, but he's friendly—and he can even tell a joke or two. From what I heard from him recently, he's got this thing where he can manipulate time in a number of ways. I'm not sure if he can do those anymore since he left his... creator to help Ratchet out."

"Sounds like they're two very extraordinary friends to you."

"Yes, they are." Talwyn's expression turned from one of wonder to one of past frustration. "And then there's Qwark. He's the galactic president but he's a bit of a goof-ball, and also a coward. He even has this thing where he can persuade people that he can do all these heroic things that Ratchet mainly does. You probably don't want to fall under his taking credit for your achievements."

Ashley stepped in behind Shepard. "If that guy starts trying to take credit for my job, I'd make him get on his knees and give me two thousand push-ups." This learns a smile to the tanned woman's face as she says this.

"That's one way of making him think twice before he says anything," Talwyn commented. "Qwark's sort of like you but taller"—she looks at Ashley's hand, quickly counting four fingers and a thumb—"and with two missing fingers."

Shepard sported a slight frown, the last few words reminding her of turian talons. "There are a few aliens here in the Milky Way with two less fingers than us, mainly turians and krogan."

"And quarians," Ashley added.

"And quarians, too," Shepard acknowledged with a nod. She turned back to Talwyn. "You mentioned this Dr. Nefarious. What kind of trouble had he been up to before you went out to go after him?"

"Trust me, Nefarious is not the kind of robot you'd like to negotiate with. He's done stuff like contaminate water supplies, creating machines to turns organics in robots and making them obey his commands, taking control of a huge clock to turn time into his own view—this basically tells you how ruthless he is. And the weird part is, he wasn't a robot to begin with."

"I'm guessing becoming a robot was an improvement for him?"

"In some ways, yes. In others, not really. Get him really mad and he'll start going in a fit and suddenly freeze up while his auditory processors generate audio from overrated soap operas. Only way to stop that is if you give him a good whack at his head."

Kaidan was next to step him. "I probably wouldn't want to be in his position. That might mean more headaches than I could bear."

The monorail steadily came to a halt at the end of the rails. All four got off at the side and looked around the area for any Geth lurking around. It seemed quiet. Talwyn listened in for any sounds that could indicate a possible danger in the area. All she heard was a steady, high-tone beeping sound coming from her side, but as she carefully followed it, the beeping became louder and she was closing in on what looked like a case of explosives placed on the exterior.

The case had a timer counting down at four minutes. This put the Markazian on full alert, shouting to get the attention of the three humans. "Shepard, the place is armed with bombs!"

They all turned to Talwyn, running over to the bomb she found. Kaidan was the first to get there, along with his commander and Ashley. "Demolition charges! The Geth must have planted them," he said, voice raised in alertness.

As soon as the two female soldiers saw these, they bolted to look for any more armed bombs in the area. Ashley soon found a second on the other side of the compound. "Hurry! We need to find them all and shut them down!"

Shepard looked to Talwyn. "Talwyn, do you have any experience in disarming bombs?"

She nodded quickly.

"Go with Chief Williams. Do what you can to disarm the demolition charges. According to our radar, there's only four within the area—two of them not far from here. Move out!"

Talwyn and Ashley were soon sprinting to the far side of the area to disarm the second charge while Shepard stayed with Kaidan to work on the first. The lieutenant would have to use the skills he's required for to disarm them as his commander does not share his same expertise.

Talwyn saw the charge ahead and quickly took in as little time as possible for her to figure out how to disarm it. Once she found what was needed, she was soon working at the bomb system and finding its respectable coils to cut off. For her first try, it took her just forty seconds.

"Done!"

"Quick, there's another one upstairs!" Ashley called out, quickly heading her way up a metal stairway then onto the catwalk leading to the third demolition charge.

The Markazian got to it before the gunnery chief as she quickly flew there with her jetpack.

"A jetpack? Now that's handy," Ashley commented.

"Yeah. 'Never go anywhere without a jetpack,' my father always said." She turned her attention back to the demolition charge, remembering the procedure she used from the second charge and soon disabled it in less than half a minute. She saw Shepard and Kaidan running pass her and on the catwalk towards an area on the other side, using their pistols to shoot at any Geth that got in their way.

Ashley got out her assault rifle while Talwyn got her respectable pistol, running towards cover at a few metal crates and peeking out to see a Geth trooper heading towards her direction. She aimed and fired, the lasers hitting at the chestplate and at the neck. Another shot hit his flashlight head and the trooper stumbled down to the ground. Shepard got out her shotgun and pulled its trigger, the blast hitting two Geth at a time and knocking them out. Kaidan finished them off with a pistol shot in their heads.

As the catwalk was cleared, Talwyn activated her jetpack, hovering over the area and looking for the fourth and final charge. She spotted it and then called out from above, "Shepard, move ahead and after a left turn, go take a right! There's a demolition charge at a corner where there's a green glowing pillar at the centre of the area!"

"Thanks! Let's move!" Shepard and her two soldiers headed through an opening on their left and following in on the right turn Talwyn indicated. The Markazian followed, her jetpack directing her to the area the demolition charge was found.

Kaidan was at the charge first, his left arm lighting up with his omni-tool as he keyed in several commands with his right hand. A spark lit up on the bomb, indicating that it was now disabled.

"That's the last of them."

Everyone was releasing held breath, the tension turned down for them. Soon, the three humans and the Markazian were looking and approaching the green glowing pillar. Ashley looked to Talwyn, a black eyebrow raised. "'Green glowing pillar,' huh?"

Talwyn was confused at the chief's comment. "Well, isn't it a pillar?"

"Nope. It's the Prothean beacon we were looking for."

"Oh. Sorry."

"That's OK. No one's practically seen one of those in their lives, except for us, the colonists here and maybe another person or two out in the galaxy."

Shepard looked to the beacon, knowing that it is still intact. She raised a hand to her helmet, a finger touching her communications unit. "Normandy, the beacon is secure. Request immediate evac."

"This is amazing," Kaidan commented in awe. "Actual working Prothean technology. Unbelievable!"

"It wasn't doing anything like that when they dug it up. Something must have triggered it." Ashley's eyes were slightly squinted in focus, noticing the green glow from the beacon a brighter tone than before.

Kaidan was still in awe and was walking slowly towards the beacon itself; he didn't even noticed he was getting closer until the green glow got brighter with every step he took.

Talwyn noticed this but kept a safe distance, fearing the beacon could perform something dangerous to the male soldier. But before she could even act on anything, the beacon's glow got even brighter than ever and an electrical force was caught within Kaidan, drawing him in.

The two female soldiers were soon on high alert, the commander running towards Kaidan and grabbing him, throwing him out of the way with whatever strength she had in her. But even if she was successful in pulling Kaidan out of the beacon's pull, she soon took his place, only this time she was lifted a few feet in the air.

"Shepard!"

"No! Don't touch her! It's too dangerous!"

Shepard was trapped not being able to move a muscle. Her breathing hitched but could somehow only take small breaths, her limbs trembling from the beacon's ethereal grasp. What affected her more was her mind—she felt her head throbbing at strange images appear in her mind, acting out as if looking at them with her own eyes, now dilated. All she saw were images of black, red and orange, the colours forming indescribable pictures in figures. The pain ensued, the images becoming darker in contrast.

Ashley, Kaidan and Talwyn stared in fear for their commanding officer. But soon, an explosion lit up the beacon, causing pieces of white metal to fly over the area and the green glow vanishing as the beacon's energy released Shepard, making fall to the ground.

Kaidan got to her to see if she was alright. He saw that she couldn't open her eyes, but he did notice her eyelashes flustering every second or so. This gave the lieutenant the indication that Shepard was alive, and eventually he was calming down.

"Is she hurt?" Talwyn asked him.

"I don't think so. I better get her to the med-bay as soon as the Normandy arrives."

"That's your ship, right?"

"Yeah, but not in the way that you'd put it. The ship belongs to a military faction called the Alliance. Captain Anderson's in charge of the Normandy."

Just when he'd finished answering the Markazian's question, a monochrome ship came down and hovered over the area. The ramp was lowered, giving Ashley and Kaidan to pick Shepard's unconscious body inside. Talwyn was hesitant when she was the last to approach the cargo hold, but went in knowing she may not get another opportunity like this if she stayed behind.

* * *

><p>As Saren directed his flagship to their new destination, Nefarious was surprised to see another person other than Saren to meet. The woman he was just talking to, Benezia, was an asari Matriarch. Of course, Nefarious new nothing about the aliens in this new galaxy, other than what humans looked like and knowing Saren's form, but he was perplexed when he met another organic, and a female one at that.<p>

Benezia was teaching the robot about her own race, the asari. They were all female and they could live for a thousand years. The Matriarch rank came within age, but they were also known to be the most respected of their mono-gendered race.

Nefarious went to talk with Saren a bit more about their goals while the Matriarch looked over their progress on Eden Prime. The last known footage she was able to pick up from the monitors was the sight of three humans and a pink-skinned alien of unknown origin. Seconds later, she saw a ship with the tag "Normandy SR-1" painted on the hull. This would not look good for the turian Spectre.

"If I may say a word," Benezia said, grabbing the attention of the turian and the psychotic robot. "There happens to be a... complication with the plan. Four marines were sighted on our radar—one of them, however, was not a human. I do not know what type of species it was, but I would say that it was allied with the other three, who were humans."

"Tell me about the fourth marine," Nefarious said.

"It's on the radar," she indicated with a hand.

The robot looked on the screen, identifying the fourth being shown from the footage seconds later. _That Markazian!_ he thought in an outrage. _She can't be that same one with Ratchet!_

"What else have you learned, Benezia?" Saren asked, eyes looking out into place, his back towards the asari Matriarch.

"We identified the ship that touched down on Eden Prime—the Normandy, a human Alliance vessel. It was under the command of Captain Anderson. They managed to save the colony."

"And the beacon?"

"One of the humans may have used it."

Nefarious turned towards Benezia, then to Saren who held his head in frustration, then turning into a fit of rage, throwing items around him around the cockpit. The objects thrown hardly touched the asari or the robot, but the room was filled with the Spectre's yells and shouts. Just as the eventual silence took place, Saren had his talons around Benezia's black crown, piercing blue eyes staring at irises of ice. The Matriarch showed no emotion relating to fear, nor did she budge or blink an eye. Tension grew even with the turian's outburst dissipated in quietude.

He growled, letting go of Benezia, "This human must be eliminated."

* * *

><p>With the silence still impacting on the Lombax, Ratchet was becoming worried. Clank offered his optimistic words but they didn't stop the steady loss of hope. Would they ever be found?<p>

During Ratchet's time, he reflected on his life and how it came to the point that he was a hero to many lives in multiple galaxies. There was so much he could remember—the first time he met Clank, getting assigned for a mission outside the Solana Galaxy, battling against an enemy that Qwark had some knowledge and experience with, fighting for his life when forced to compete in a viral holo-vision sports show, taking down an emperor who created clones out of his own DNA, being thrown in gaol for a crime he never committed and waiting for Clank to help find the real culprit as well as getting him out, entering a brand new galaxy and finding out about how he was part of an endangered species, his search for Clank when he was abducted by the Zoni, meeting a Lombax general with ties to his own father then died thinking changing time could do more good than harm when the facts indicated otherwise, restoring the alignment of the planets in the three galaxies he knew from a Markazian candidate gone rogue when Qwark became Polaris' galactic president—he remembered clearly what each adventure he and Clank went on, along with those with Talwyn and Qwark, and what they all meant.

The two shared those memories together, and they even exchange little pieces of history they had when they were apart.

They were soon interrupted when Aphelion told them, "I'm picking up a signal from an unknown ship. It is not marked as hostile, but their systems indicate it to be a stealth vessel."

This immediately alerts Ratchet, making him nearly jump out of his seat. "Bring up the transmission, Aphelion."

The communications systems were active on the small ship's screen, viewing a blue line around horizontally. A voice was heard from the speakers. "This is SSV Normandy, Flight Lieutenant Jeff Moreau speaking. Do you copy?"

"I copy, lieutenant," Ratchet answered. "This is the starship Aphelion. We got stranded and we're requested a pick-up."

"Affirmative. Open ship cargo bay doors. You may proceed and dock there."

"Roger that." Ratchet was now pumped with adrenaline as he steered Aphelion ahead to the Normandy ship. The ramp to the hull opened up, leaving enough room for Aphelion to fly in.

It brought a cheer to the two heroes as they knew their distress beacon had been recognised and they were no longer stranded in the unknown.

But, as Aphelion was docking in the Normandy's cargo bay, little did Ratchet and Clank know was that their friend Talwyn was onboard the larger ship.


	5. The Normandy

**Lombax Effect—Chapter 5**

As Aphelion docked in the Normandy cargo bay, Ratchet and Clank got out of their starship to take in the dark blue interior, their eyes and retinal receivers looking in every possible direction.

"Wow. This is one heck of a ship," Ratchet commented in awe.

"We should probably go and see the commanding officer and ask them of our location."

"Sounds like a good idea, pal."

Just as the two were taking their first steps on the metal floor, they saw someone awfully familiar approach them from an elevator.

"Ratchet? Clank?" a female voice called out. It belonged to that very person, as the voice was also very familiar. She came into a quick walk and was coming closer every second. Eventually, the figure was in clear view, and her image gave Ratchet a wide-eyed gaze. "Tal?"

Talwyn was laughing lightly in cheer, running over to Ratchet and embracing him in a tight hug. "It's so good to see you two!"

"Yeah, same here," the Lombax said, returned her hug. He broke it up soon when his mind was immediately clicked back in his original train of thought. "Wait, when did you get on this ship?"

"Several hours ago. But most of the time, I was on a colony that fell under attack."

"Were you alone?" Clank asked.

"I was at first, but then I came across three soldiers who were fighting against these robots called Geth."

"Geth?" Ratchet raised an eyebrow in confusion. "What were they doing at the colony?"

"I don't know what, but they were led by a Spectre. I don't know about them—someone on this ship can give you the details—but I think Nefarious may be involved in this, too."

The two heroes ended up shaking their heads in worry. "Who can we talk to about this colony attack?" Clank asked a few seconds later.

Talwyn pointed to the elevator behind her. "I can take you to Captain Anderson. He knows some things about what's going on. He's just one level above us."

The three were making their way to the elevator, all glad of their fortunate reunion. Talwyn pressed the button, taking them up as Ratchet shifted in his feet. "So, Tal, who was with you? The soldiers, I mean."

"They're all human, and they seem to have a lot of skills with guns. There's a guy named Kaidan Ale—

"His name's Kaidan?"

"Yeah. Sounds pretty funny if you think about it. Anyway, there's Lieutenant Kaidan Alenko, along with two girls in the group. There's a tan-skinned woman, Gunnery Chief Ashley Williams, and then there's the pale-skinned woman, Commander Shepard. I don't know her first name yet."

"Sounds like they're the kind of people who shoot bad guys seriously."

"You could say that." The elevator opened, taking them to a new room that was more lit than the cargo bay.

"So, where's... Shepard, was it? Where is she?"

"Last I saw her, she was still in a coma at the medical bay, just on the right of this room."

"I wonder what caused her to go in a coma," Clank said, his spherical head tilted to the side.

"Well, that's something I'm not so sure about myself. Back at the colony, Shepard found some ancient beacon and got caught in its beam and then lost consciousness. None of us will know what really happened to her until she wakes up."

Just as they got out of the elevator, a dark-skinned man in a indigo-coloured uniform was walking from his left. He turned to see them then stopped. "Ah, Miss Apogee. Who are these two behind you?"

"Captain Anderson, these are my friends Ratchet"—Talwyn gestured her hand over to the Lombax—"and Clank. They just arrived at the cargo bay."

"Joker informed me about that."

Ratchet spoke, confusion filled in his voice. "Wait, Joker? Who's that?"

"Joker is our flight lieutenant," the captain answered.

"I thought his name was Jeff... something-or-other."

Talwyn turned to the Lombax. "Jeff Moreau. It's his real name, but everyone just calls him Joker. Don't know why, though. Anyway, Captain, how's the commander doing?"

"I was just on my way to check up on her. I have to inform Shepard that we're making our way to our next destination. In the meantime, Miss Apogee, why don't you introduce your friends to the ground team, including Chief Williams?"

"Aye, Captain." As Captain Anderson headed his way to the medical bay on the right, Talwyn turned around to Ratchet and Clank. "Well, I guess you two better see the Normandy crew. Wanna come see them?"

"Physically, you're fine. But I detected some unusual brain activity, abnormal beta waves. I also noticed an increase in your rapid-eye movement, signs typically associated with intense dreaming."

Shepard was leaning against the medical bed she spent her fifteen-hour coma on. From what she'd recently learned when she woke up, she had lost consciousness right after getting caught in the ethereal grasp of the Prothean beacon back on Eden Prime. Kaidan told her that it exploded and is now broken. What disturbed the commander the most was what she dreamt about while she was carried to the Normandy's medical bay. It may have even gave her a fright from what she saw in those "intense dreams" Doctor Chakwas mentioned.

Swallowing the lump in her throat, Shepard spoke. "I saw... I'm not sure what I saw. Death, destruction... Nothing's really clear..."

Kaidan looked at his commanding officer in concern, tilting his head to try to read her expression until Chakwas spoke again. "Hmm... I better add this to my report. It may—"

The doors opened behind them and in came the captain in his indigo uniform.

"Oh, Captain Anderson."

"How's our XO holding up, Doctor?" Anderson asked Chakwas.

"All the readings look normal. I'd say the commander's going to be fine."

"Glad to hear it. Shepard, I need to speak with you—in private."

From hearing this, Kaidan felt like he would have to wait for his next conversation with the commander. Getting off the medical bed he was leaning on, he responded to his captain, "Aye aye, Captain. I'll be in the mess if you need me." He headed his way out of the sick bay, but only to be stopped right when the electric sliding door closed behind him, seeing two unfamiliar beings in front of him.

Ratchet and Clank seemed to have just arrived by the sick bay door, but the three didn't recognise each other.

"Uh... You new here?" the lieutenant asked, bringing a hand out to rub his neck.

"We are," the small robot answered. "Talwyn was going to escort us to the ship's team. Would you happen to be one of the crew members here?"

"Yeah, I am." He walked over to a large table with an orange light lit under it. With the two newcomers following, he was leaning against the wall at the front before continuing "Staff Lieutenant Kaidan Alenko. What are your names?"

"My name's Ratchet," the Lombax answered politely before gesturing to his synthetic friend. "And this is Clank. I had a father named Kaden."

"Oh, really? That's almost a coincidence there. What was he like?"

Ratchet dropped his head, facing the ground. "I..." he said, voice low with contemplation. "I never really got the chance to meet him. I was too young... and he died before I could even remember..."

"Hey, don't worry about it, Ratchet," Kaidan said, resting a hand on the Lombax's shoulder and giving him a small smile when Ratchet looked up to the human. "About half the ship's experience loss, with family or friends. Huh... 'Welcome to the crew,' I guess, right?"

Ratchet and Clank shared a chuckle at the human's last sentence, knowing that they will share a good friendship with each other. They continued talking about various topics like what they did in the past and what they'd accomplished. Some parts even became a debate whenever Ratchet or Clank brought up how Qwark was always getting himself into trouble, or making the wildest ideas where most of them were unbelievable to a serious mind such as Kaidan's.

But all in all, they became good friends, and they even got to meet up with Ashley while Shepard was busy talking with Captain Anderson. No doubt there would be more for everyone, even the commander, to talk about in the near future.

Shepard came out and in the Normandy's mess hall and talked to Ashley, Kaidan and Talwyn about what their next task would be: they were to embark to the Citadel and present their report on Eden Prime—everything that happened and who was involved—to the Council for analysis. Since there was still some time before the Normandy arrived to the Citadel, Shepard decided to speak to the two beings who docked at the ship cargo bay.

Ratchet and Clank were talking amongst themselves at the large table in the mess hall, speaking about what they had just learned on the Normandy and what Talwyn had experienced. Apart from all of that, they began thinking Nefarious could be involved with the Eden Prime attack, and grew worried for Qwark's personal safety.

They both heard footsteps steadily increasing in volume and the Lombax and robot turned to see Shepard walking up to them, most likely wanting to talk with them.

"I assume your names are Ratchet and Clank?"

"Yep, that's us," Ratchet answered. "So, you're Commander Shepard?"

"Yes, I am. Talwyn told me about you two," she answered, pulling a strand of bronze-coloured hair over her ear. "I just wanted to ask you how you got stranded before Joker gave you entry to the Normandy."

The Lombax was immediately stumped, groaning slightly in frustration when he heard the name "Joker" from the woman's mouth. "Again, why is the pilot called 'Joker'? No offense, but I just don't get it."

"Maybe that's something you should ask him yourself. Anyway, back to my question. Talwyn told me you were stranded in space. From what you told her, you sent out a sort of distress beacon and waited for someone to pick it up. I'd say you were lucky, but how did you get stuck in the first place?"

"Let us just say, Commander, that we were first at a research facility to see a 'mass relay' at the edge of our galaxy." Clank finally said.

"I'm guessing you're Clank?" Shepard asked, turning her gaze from Ratchet to his robot friend.

"Correct, Commander."

"First of all, mass relays can be found in just about every system in this galaxy. Second, how did you get to another galaxy?" she asked, one of her eyebrows raised in question.

There was silence before Ratchet responded. "Well, I guess it's too late to say that... we've got more advanced technology in our galaxies?"

"Hold on, 'galaxies'? You mean you've been to others before?"

"Yeah, but not with a mass relay most of the time."

Shepard sighed. "OK, this is a lot to take in, and I've got more to ask than ever. So, what do you two do for a living?"

"Ratchet and I are mainly freelance commando and infiltrator. We are occasionally sent into missions concerning galactic security and apprehend criminals. A few of them were recently dangerous missions that threatened the stability of the space-time continuum."

"Usually, we deal with stuff less weird than things like that," Ratchet added.

Shepard crossed her arms, thinking over what the two had just told her. "An alien commando, and a synthetic infiltrator..." she muttered to herself. Standing straight again, she looked back to the two sitting at the mess table. "Ratchet, Clank, I think you might be able to help out in this mission gone wrong. Did Talwyn inform you of what happened on Eden Prime?"

They both nodded.

"Then you probably already know that the attack on the colony was intentional and whoever's responsible for this must be found and confronted. There's a turian Spectre who's gone rogue, named Saren, and Miss Apogee believes that he wasn't alone—said something about a robot named Dr. Nefarious..."

Ratchet's eyes nearly popped out of their sockets from hearing that name. "Nefarious? No way... He laid an attack on a colony, with Talwyn on it?"

"We're not sure. She thinks they may have joined up, but that's just a small possibility. We're heading our way to the Citadel, and if you know this Nefarious well, you could tell us and the Council about his character and what he might be planning."

"Sounds good. Clank and I have been looking for him for a while now."

"Also, Captain Anderson is thinking of enlisting you to the Normandy. He's already given Talwyn the position of ensign. For now, Ratchet and Clank, you're each a serviceman."

"That is very generous, Commander," Clank said. "We appreciate this offer, and we do hope to present the best of our skills in your service."

Shepard chuckled and lightly raised a hand. "You're welcome, Clank, but you don't have to be that formal. Around the Normandy, people call me Garnet."

"You mean 'Garnet' as in the gemstone?" Ratchet asked for clarification.

"No, Garnet, as in with a silent 'T'." The Lombax still held a confused look. "I... grew up as a colonist with a family with extremely rare names. I'll tell you more once we're done with our business on the Citadel. In the meantime, you two might want to get yourselves ready. I think we're getting closer to the Citadel right now. Meet me at the airlock upstairs.

"OK. Nice to meet you, Commander!"

"Good timing, Commander," Joker said in his pilot's seat. "I was just about to bring us in to the Citadel. See that taxpayer at work."

The purple nebula cloud glowed brighter each second, and within that time period, the very mega-station known as the Citadel was in sight. A smaller station shaped like a concave, four-pointed star was then seen floating above the ring holding the five Citadel arms.

Ashley and Shepard looked through the window at the side, gazing at the star-shaped ship. "Look at the size of that ship!" Ashley exclaimed.

"The Ascension, flagship of the Citadel fleet," Kaidan said, looking out at another window on the other side.

Joker looked out through his own window at the front, not as excited as the crewmen. "Well, size isn't everything."

"Why so touchy, Joker?" Ashley asked.

"I'm just saying, you need firepower, too."

Shepard turned away from the window and went out, catching Ratchet, Clank and Talwyn on their way to the airlock. She nodded when she past them, jogging her way downstairs from the main floor and heading to the elevator on her way to the armoury to suit up, bringing out her N7 armour from her locker.


	6. The Citadel

**Lombax Effect—Chapter 6**

**Citadel, Widow System**

"So, you're saying that humans were the latest species to experience interstellar travel?"

"That's right, Ratchet," Shepard said to the Lombax whilst walking through the Presidium. The Commander was talking about humanity and their place in the galaxy as they headed their way to the embassies. "We also try to gain the most advanced technology we can use to help better our relationships with the other races. There's still a few we haven't encountered, mostly because we haven't travelled to every system within the galaxy, but that's another story. Some humans are still on Earth while others are living in colonies or spaceships."

"Wow, that's amazing. So where were you from before, Commander?"

"I grew up at a colony called Mindoir. Life wasn't always easy, but we worked very hard at our jobs, and kids even helped out their parents whenever they could. To me, it was like paradise... until it got hit by slavers..." Garnet's pace slowed down, head hanging and looking down at the pristine white ground. She quickly looked back up, steeling herself from any worries that were occupying her mind. "I've been with the Alliance for eleven years, and I'm actually surprised I get to meet some people from a different galaxy—even if humans are still different from other races."

Ratchet sported a light smirk. "Hey, not many races like Lombaxes or Markazians have tails or long ears, or even four fingers like you guys do."

"That's true," Shepard said in agreement. "To be honest, I don't know how I would've lived my life if I had two missing fingers."

"This is an outrage!" a voice shouted from a distance. Everyone stopped in their tracks and tried to listen to where the voice came from. "The Council would step in if the Geth attacked a turian colony!"

"That must be the ambassador," Captain Anderson said. "Shepard, Alenko, Williams, Apogee, I think you better come with me. We need to see him, and he's got our report."

"What about us, Captain?" Ratchet asked. "Talwyn said there could be someone else involved in that Eden Prime incident. You gotta let me and Clank come along, too."

"He's right, Captain," Shepard said. "If they know anything about anyone who was working with Saren, they have to stay with us. Besides, these two Servicemen are part of our team now."

"But we do not have the necessary knowledge of this Citadel, or even directions to where the Council can be found." Clank added. "We must be allowed to follow Commander Shepard."

Anderson thought about this, his gaze switching from Ratchet, to Shepard, and then to Clank, and then repeated that pattern for a few more seconds. "Alright," he finally said. "Ratchet and Clank can come along. We will need all the help we can get to confirm our reports before seeing the Council."

They all continued their walk and met a dark-skinned man with gray hair wearing a white suit. Anderson was in front along with Shepard and the humans, and the others at the side. The man turned around to see the seven, a frown on his face. From his features, he would not be the kind of man who would take jokes for a living.

"That's Ambassador Udina," Kaidan whispered to Ratchet.

"Got it," the Lombax whispered back, not daring to face him so as to avoid trouble.

"Captain Anderson," the ambassador addressed. "I see you brought half the crew with you."

"Just the ground team from Eden Prime, along with our recent passengers," Anderson replied, "in case you had any questions."

"I have the mission reports. I assume they're accurate?"

"They are." The Captain noticed three metallic pedestals behind Udina. "Sounds like you convinced the Council to give us an audience."

Udina shook his head, folding his arms against his chest. "They were not happy about it. Saren's their top agent. They don't like him being accused of treason."

Shepard stepped, her expression combating Udina's serious visage. "Saren's a threat to every human colony out there! He needs to be stopped. The Council has to listen to us!"

"Settle down, Commander," Udina said to her. "You've already done more than enough to jeopardise your candidacy for the Spectres."

"Hey, you can't talk to the Commander like that!" Ratchet called out, defending Shepard. "She did her best out there with Talwyn, Kaidan and Ashley. And Saren wasn't alone!"

"It's OK, Serviceman," Shepard said calmly. "You don't need to defend me on that."

"I'm still not pleased with this," Udina continued with his glare removed from Ratchet and back to the Commander. "The mission on Eden Prime was a chance to prove you could get the job done. Instead, Nihlus ended up dead and the beacon was destroyed!"

"That's Saren's fault, not hers!" Anderson said sternly.

"Then we better hope the C-Sec investigation turns up evidence to support our accusations. Otherwise, the Council might use this as an excuse to keep you out of the Spectres." The ambassador turned to the Captain. "Captain, I want to do over a few things before the hearing. Shepard, you and the others can meet us at the Citadel Tower, top level. I'll make sure you have clearance to get in."

Anderson and Udina then walked off, leaving the other six alone.

"And that's why I hate politicians," Ashley commented once the two men were out of earshot.

"Why is that, Chief Williams?" Clank asked.

"Let me put it this way. You ever met someone who was all talk and no action, and that guy thinks he's on top of the world or something?"

"Actually, yeah, we have," Ratchet answered. "That same guy also happened to be an amateur hero who always took credit for our achievements."

"It's that Qwark guy, right?" the gunnery chief asked with a raised eyebrow.

"Who else? That ambassador almost seemed like a more serious and uptight version of Qwark."

"I'm guessing Qwark wasn't a very good politician himself?" Shepard asked.

"It's a bit complicated," Talwyn said. "Remember when I said that he's our galaxy's president? Someone else was supposed to be galactic president of the Polaris Galaxy, but then Qwark suddenly came around the same time and took his place. And that's just one of several stupid things he's already done. Another one would be when he was working as a double agent and ended up siding along the enemy instead of us. Qwark can be a lot of trouble, but we usually just deal with it. Lots of people have tried to make him change his ways, and so far there's isn't a lot of changes we've seen."

"Well, if we ever do come across this Qwark person, Ensign, then I'll have to put him to work," the Commander said. "And if he doesn't listen, I'll let Ash do the talking."

Talwyn looked over to Ashley and asked, "You're good with reasoning with people, Chief?"

"The Commander can be a softie sometimes. Whatever I say could almost set people on fire."

The six continued their conversation on their way to the Citadel Tower—with the help of the embassy receptionist and a VI tour guide named Avina—each person within the group giving out their view on politics, despite their dislike for it. They all took in the sites of the Presidium, gazing at the magnificent fountains and the Mass Relay monument along the way. There had also been a shop where weapons and armour could be purchased with the use of credits, although the three crew members from the Polaris Galaxy will have to get used to the fact that the Milky Way's currency is very different to their use of bolts as money.

**At the Citadel Tower...**

"The Council isn't going to ask me any questions, are they?" Ashley asked as she and everyone were riding the elevator up the Citadel Tower.

"I doubt it," Kaidan answered. "We've made our reports. Now we just have to trust Ambassador Udina."

"No, we don't, sir." Ashley said, her tone hinting a dislike to, most likely, the human ambassador who would support their views on the Eden Prime attack.

"Let's just hope the meeting goes well," Ratchet said. "I mean, what kind of a guy is Saren like anyway?"

Before anyone could answer the Lombax, the elevator doors opened. The top of the Citadel Tower held a wondrous atmosphere with bright rose-coloured trees against the dim copper lighting. A few people were walking in their own directions, possibly those who worked with the Council and managed security and tower maintenance. All were looking in awe as they stepped out of the elevator.

But as they did, they came across two turians—both male—and they were possibly talking about something very serious. Whatever it was, there were small chances that they could be related to what Shepard and her team had gone through before their trip to the Citadel.

"Give me more time. Stall them," said the gray turian in the black and blue outfit. His tone, even with the secondary note sounding in his voice, seemed determined but also insistent.

"Stall the Council? Don't be ridiculous," said the second turian, this one with a dark face with white stripes running down, wearing a black and red outfit almost similar to the other one's outfit. Although sincere, this one was talking like he could take a case too seriously for it to seem like a joke. "Your investigation is over, Garrus." He then left, passing through the group of humans and aliens with a possible frown on his monochrome face.

Ratchet gazed over to the black-and-white faced turian, thinking something didn't go very well for him and the other turian. He turned back as Shepard approached the turian in the black and blue uniform.

The turian looked over to the woman. "Commander Shepard?" Shepard nodded, noticing the turian's change of tone to a lighter greeting. "Garrus Vakarian. I was the officer in charge of the C-Sec investigation into Saren."

They all noticed this, but the Lombax stepped forward, eyes wide open as he saw Garrus. "Wow, really? You know something about Saren?" Ratchet asked.

"Yeah, I could tell there was something suspicious about him when I found out he was on Eden Prime recently," Garrus answered, his small blue eyes widened slightly when he saw Ratchet. "That why I led the investigation, to see if there were any clues to his suspicious activities."

"Who were you just talking to?" Shepard asked.

"That was Executor Pallin, head of Citadel Security. My boss..." Garrus answered, mildly annoyed from his last conversation with the turian who had left. "He'll be presenting my findings on Saren to the Council."

"Were you able to find some useful information, Mr. Vakarian?" Clank asked.

If Garrus was surprised by the fact that Shepard and her team had a synthetic with them, he didn't show it. "Saren's a Spectre. Most of his activities are classified. I couldn't find anything solid, but I know he's up to something." His gaze turned back up to Shepard. "Like you humans say, 'I feel it in my gut'."

"I think the Council's ready for us, Commander," Kaidan said, pointing up to where the Council would be standing upstairs.

Shepard nodded to her lieutenant, motioning for him and the others to follow her.

"Good luck, Shepard," Garrus said as she walked passed. "Maybe they'll listen to you."

_I hope so, too_, She thought. _Maybe they will listen to what I have to say._ She didn't say this aloud, but she would admit that Officer Vakarian had the right idea about what was going on right now, even with the crisis Saren committed.

"Just how dangerous is Saren, Commander?" Ratchet said, coming up by her side as she started walking up the stairs. "I mean, I've met a lot of despicable people before, but..." He saw Garnet turning her gaze to the Lombax, an eyebrow raised. "But, I'm just saying. What happened with Saren, anyway? What made him throw an attack at that colony earlier?"

They were already up one flight of stairs and Shepard guided her team around the fountain, stepping onto the second set of stairs where she could see Captain Anderson at the top. "From what Captain Anderson's told me, Saren hates humans. The Eden Prime attack may have been an act of war, and maybe he was trying to prove his point with that."

"That can't be all," Ratchet said. "Talwyn mentioned a sort of beacon. Why was he after that?"

"I'm not sure. Maybe he's got a better idea of what that vision I got was trying to point out. I still can't figure out what it's telling me..."

Before the two, or anyone else, could say another word, they were up the second flight of stairs, seeing Captain Anderson waiting for them.

"The hearing's already started. Come on."

The captain quickly walked up the last flight of stairs to the chamber where three people stood at three pedestals at the other side. The Citadel Council was present with—from left to right—a turian, an asari and a salarian waiting for Shepard and the other six to come up. To the far left, was a huge hologram of a turian—his own image immediately hinted a menacing look to the visitors from Polaris.

"The Geth attack is a matter of some concern, but there is nothing to indicate Saren was involved in any way," the purple-toned asari in the centre said; her light tone held discretion and authority.

On the asari's right, the turian looked to the human ambassador near Anderson. "The investigation by Citadel Security turned up no evidence to support your charge of treason."

Clank looked up to Ratchet, the plates around his eyes showing a hint of worry. "It seems that Officer Vakarian could not offer his report."

Ratchet nodded. "Yeah, seems like it. I kinda feel sorry for him, even though we don't know him very much."

Udina was losing his patience. "An eyewitness saw him kill Nihlus in cold blood."

"We've read the Eden Prime reports, Ambassador," the hooded salarian on the asari's left said. "The testimony of one traumatised dockworker is hardly compelling proof."

Talwyn was listening from the back, shaking her head in disbelief. "Guys," she said towards Ratchet and Clank. "This is getting ridiculous. It's like they don't believe a single bit about what happened."

The Markazian couldn't say much more as the holographic turian—Saren—spoke. "I resent these accusations. Nihlus was a fellow Spectre, and a friend."

"That just let you catch him off guard," Anderson said, frowning upon Saren.

To almost everyone's dismay, Saren was not showing a single piece of admittance. "Captain Anderson. You always seem to be involved when humanity makes false charges against me." The turian Spectre's gaze turned slightly. "And this must be your protégé, Commander Shepard—the one who let the beacon get destroyed."

Shepard stared at Saren, unimpressed by the turian's arrogant accusation against her. _That bastard..._ "The mission on Eden Prime was top-secret," she said, her stare still on Saren as she sent bits of her anger out against him. "The only way you could know about the beacon was if you were there."

"With Nihlus gone, his files passed on to me." If the evil turian Spectre hadn't flinched, it would mean that he was pretending to act innocent. "I read the Eden Prime reports. I was unimpressed." After turning to the Council, he added, "But what can you expect from a human?"

Shepard, her anger heightened, stepped forward near the Council's place in the chamber. "Saren despises humanity. That's why he attacked Eden Prime!"

"Your species needs to learn its place, Shepard," Saren said, his voice tainted with some of his own hatred. "You're not ready to join the Council—you're not even ready to join the Spectres."

"He has no right to say that!" Ambassador Udina called out. "That's not his decision!"

"Shepard's admission into the Spectres is not the purpose of this meeting," the asari councillor said, doing her best to keep the situation calm between both sides of the argument.

"This meeting has no purpose," Saren said, his tone unchanged. "The humans are wasting your time, Councillor. And mine."

"That's not true!"

Shepard, Anderson, Udina, the Council and Saren looked around. Ratchet and Talwyn came up near the human commander. Talwyn was first to speak. "Humanity isn't wasting their time. I was there with Commander Shepard, and we made sure the beacon was safe from the Geth!"

"She's right," Ratchet joined in, staring at the hologram of Saren. "How can you even say that? What have we ever done to you to make you hate humans?" He could see that Saren was already frowning upon the Lombax.

Shepard, surprised by how the two supported her, stepped up again to have her say. "Ensign Apogee and Serviceman Ratchet are right, Councillors. Saren is hiding his position as a Spectre. You need to open your eyes!"

"What we need is evidence," the salarian councillor said. "So far, we've seen nothing."

Captain Anderson thought quickly through this tough trial, eventually having an idea in his head. "There is still one outstanding issue—Commander Shepard's vision. It may have been triggered by the beacon."

All six on the Normandy party, apart from the captain and ambassador, nodded in agreement. But their hope soon dropped. "Are we allowing dreams into evidence now?" Saren said in his usual attitude. "How can I defend my innocence against this kind of testimony?"

"Innocence, my ass," Ashley muttered quietly at the back with Kaidan.

"I agree," the turian councillor said, apparently showing something that made the others think that he was on the rogue Spectre's side. "Our judgement must be based on facts and evidence, not wild imaginings and ruthless speculations."

Talwyn looked to Shepard, seeing a deep frown upon the commander's pale face.

"Do you have anything else to add, Commander Shepard?" the salarian councillor coolly asked.

_The Council doesn't believe me and Saren's not admitting to what his done as if he's on stage at a Shakespeare showcase_, Shepard thought to herself in suppressed anger. Feeling defeated, even when she didn't believe there would be support on her end from the beginning, she made one final comment to the Council, "You've made your decision. I won't waste my breath."

The asari and turian councillors turn to each other, exchanging opposing glances, but then faced the eight at the other side of the chamber.

The asari councillor addressed them. "The Council has found no evidence of any connection between Saren and the Geth. Ambassador, your petition to have him disbarred from the Spectres is denied."

Udina was already clenching his hands into fists as he dropped his head, facing the ground.

"I'm glad justice was served," Saren said, his hologram disconnecting. This part of the meeting was finished.


	7. Investigation Part 1

**Lombax Effect—Chapter 7**

Everyone in the Council Chambers were about to depart after their failed attempts to bringing their reports to convince the Council what happened on Eden Prime, as well as punish Saren who was responsible for the attack.

"Would the three non-humans remain here on verify their identities?" the salarian Councillor called out.

Just as Shepard and her team were to leave the platform at the Council Chambers, Ratchet, Clank and Talwyn froze, unsure of what they should feel—afraid, confused or angry—when they met the three pairs of eyes of the Citadel Council.

The asari Councillor explained, "In the Eden Prime reports, there was one person Commander Shepard was alongside with. Talwyn Apogee, please come forward."

Talwyn did so, but Ratchet and Clank followed suit behind her.

"Could you explain your presence and why you were on Eden Prime?" asked the turian Councillor.

Talwyn looked to the hierarchal trio. "Councillors, I don't think the reason I—along with my two other friends here—ended up here in your galaxy is a question of 'why,' but 'how'."

"If you are speaking of galaxies beyond the Milky Way, we know nothing about this," the salarian councillor commented.

Ratchet came up beside Talwyn, him on her right while Clank approaches to her left. "I think Clank and I can explain that."

"We are not familiar with your galaxy or your races, due to our short time here. However, I hope you can consider in understanding our situation."

Within the next ten minutes, the three told the Council their recount on what happened, from their discovery of the mass relay in the Polaris Galaxy to their joining with Commander Shepard. Ratchet and Talwyn each had to give out information about their respective races, but there wasn't much else to fill in as the Council asked only the simplest of questions, among those that required vast amounts of details and "evidence" to ensure the Lombax and Markazian would not end up unexpected lying about their identities. There were even a number of concerns regarding Clank's involvement as he was considered as a synthetic, but he had no trouble explaining to the Council how he and his two friends came to the Milky Way.

Soon after, they regrouped with Shepard, Ashley and Kaidan where they were talking to the human ambassador and Normandy captain.

"We should split up. Servicemen, Ensign, you three will head over to the financial district of the Presidium and gather intel from Barla Von. The rest will find Harkin at Chora's Den and see if he can give us any information on Garrus Vakarian. We'll meet up at the centre of C-Sec located in the Wards. Any questions?"

Shepard informed everyone what Anderson and Udina told her, most of her information coming from Anderson when asked about his story with Saren sometime in the past.

Ratchet raised his hand.

"Yes, Serviceman?" Shepard asked kindly.

"This is gonna sound a bit dumb from me, but... How are we going to find Barla Von if we don't know our way around? Isn't there some sort of map or something around here?"

As if he was the newest kid in a school classroom, the Lombax felt embarrassed asking that question as silence followed.

"Hey, I got an idea," Ashley offered. "Commander, what if one of us stuff around with Ratchet and the others while one of them switches and goes with us?"

"Yeah," Kaidan supported the chief. "No one would be walking in circles, we can provide a good amount of support if things get sticky and we'd have our information with no problem."

The rest thought about this idea. "Hmm..." Clank wondered. "I believe that idea may be quite useful. However, would there be any special equipment to assist us, such as a GPS?"

"Just about anyone can get an omni-tool at the nearest electronic store," Kaidan said to Clank. "Besides, maybe it'd be safer if I went along with you guys."

"OK, then," Shepard said shortly. "Alenko, keep Apogee and Ratchet safe. Serviceman Clank, do you want to come along with me to Chora's Den?"

The robot looked up to his friends, considering the Commander's offer. Talwyn gave a nod as Ratchet kneeled down and patted his friend's shoulder. "You'll do great, buddy. Don't worry about us."

"He's right, Clank," Talwyn joined in. "You're great with technology, and I think you'll help Shepard and Williams out a lot in that area."

With Ratchet's kind words, Clank finally came to a decision and went over to Shepard. "Commander, I will accept your offer filling in for the Lieutenant's place in your team." He gave out a titanium-plated, three-fingered hand out to her, and she kneeled down and gently took Clank's hand in a little shake.

"Welcome to the team, Serviceman Clank," Shepard then said.

"Just Clank is fine."

"OK, then, Clank." She stood back up and looked over to Ratchet, Talwyn and Kaidan as Clank walked to stand next to Ashley. "Lieutenant, you sure you can keep Serviceman Ratchet and Ensign Apogee safe?"

"Yes, ma'am," Kaidan answered.

The two teams split apart and were on their way to their objectives. Kaidan was a huge help to Ratchet and Talwyn due to his knowledge on onmi-tools and biotic implants. As they were talking to Barla Von, they discovered someone was linked to a mysterious person known only as the Shadow Broker. However, the person targeted by the agent was the owner of a nightclub in the Wards. With much explaining, it was about time they started heading down to the Wards.

Meanwhile, Shepard, Clank and Ashley had gone down to the Wards first to look for a suspended Citadel Security officer named Harkin. But no matter now annoyed Shepard was herself when he had provoked her of her 'looks,' Harkin didn't give out his information about Garrus Vakarian willingly. But there was also some information about Captain Anderson that had slipped.

"Why didn't Captain Anderson tell us he used to be a Spectre?" Ashley asked on the way out of the bass-pumping bar. "Commander, what do you think about this?"

"I don't know, Chief," Shepard said. "I'll ask him once we've found Garrus. Let's just focus on the objective first."

"Yes, ma'am," both Ash and Clank said in unison.

Clank looked up to the Commander in concern. "Commander, if I may ask, how successful do you believe we will find the evidence we need against Saren and Doctor Nefarious?"

"We'll know once we've found Garrus, and we know where he can be found."

"Doctor Michel's clinic should just be on the left upstairs," Kaidan said to Ratchet and Talwyn.

"Somehow, I've got this feeling that we aren't going to just see a cop and a doctor," Ratchet commented as they went up the stairs from the Wards markets. "What if that info broker was sending us into a trap?"

"I'm not sure an info broker could lie about somebody's location if it was something this important," Talwyn said. "Lieutenant, what do you think?"

Kaidan reached the top of the stairs and waited for the others to catch up. "I'm pretty sure we haven't been tipped off by Barla Von, but we'll know whether or not he's given us the right information at the clinic." He then looked over to where they were going and continued once the Polaris aliens were back in position. "Heck, maybe the Commander will get there shortly before we do."

"I think she already has," Talwyn pointed ahead of them.

The three stopped as they saw Shepard, Ashley and Clank heading inside, only to stop halfway through the door and slowly reaching for their guns.

"What's going on?" Ratchet asked.

Voices were heard from the clinic ahead until one of them was loud enough to grab their full attention.

"Who are you?"

"Let her go," Shepard called out, drawing her pistol at whoever was inside.

Kaidan, along with Ratchet and Talwyn ran over to the Commander's side, only to see the turian they saw back at the Citadel Tower shooting a man who held a woman hostage, possibly the doctor Chloe Michel. But she wasn't free yet as the thug had friends coming from the far side of the clinic.

Shepard and her team got ready for combat, finding a place to duck behind and checking where the thugs were located. They were shooting their guns past their cover, bullets whizzing by. Ratchet was a little far from them but he instinctively took his Constructo Pistol out and look for a thug through the scope. Once the thug was in sight and stopped moving, the Lombax pulled the trigger, a "zing" sounded as the bullet went straight to the enemy's shoulder, paralysing him.

"Nice shot," Kaidan said from the other side of the door Ratchet took cover at.

Ratchet looked to the human lieutenant and grinned. "Thanks."

"There's more!" Shepard called out as she held her pistol and quickly stood up to shoot at another thug. She was thankful that the doctor and the turian were not in the middle of the fire-fight.

Ashley vaulted over the low wall she, Clank and the Commander were taking cover behind. The soldier then slid to cover in an open medical room. The thugs at the far right were playing hard but it looked like they didn't want to damage the took a grenade from her belt, pulled the pin and threw it to their side.

The thugs were unaware of the grenade but were just as unfortunate when it went off with a "boom," knocking them to the ground and unable to get up.

"All targets down, Commander," Ash said.

The rest of the six-member team were relieved as they got out of cover—some were still not technically inside the clinic but soon went in—as the Commander approached Garrus. The others joined up quickly but Shepard didn't seem happy with how things went.

"Perfect timing, Shepard," Garrus said as Doctor Michel got up, still a little shaky. "Gave me a clear shot of that bastard."

Shepard holstered her pistol while still looking angrily at the turian. "What were you thinking? You could've hit the hostage!"

"There wasn't time to think. I just reacted. I didn't mean to…" Garrus turned to the doctor standing shakily beside him. "Doctor Michel, are you hurt?"

Doctor Michel recovered slightly. "No, I'm OK. Thanks to you—all of you."

Ratchet looked to the doctor. "What were those guys doing here? Why did they hold you hostage?"

"I'm sorry, but… what are you?" the French-accented doctor questioned.

"This is Serviceman Ratchet," Shepard answered. "He's a Lombax, very rare. Doctor, I know those men threatened you, but if you tell us who they work for, we can protect you."

Michel relaxed slightly. "They work for Fist. They wanted to shut me up, keep me from telling Garrus about the quarian."

"Quarian?" Talwyn said, confused. "I'm a bit lost here…"

"Maybe the quarian's linked to the investigation into Saren," Kaidan suggested.

Garrus nodded to the lieutenant. "I think it might. Doctor Michel, tell us what happened."

The doctor, still shaken, was holding her hands steadily as she shifted across the room. "A few days ago, a quarian came by my office. She'd been shot, but she wouldn't tell me who did it." She built her confidence back up as she continued. "I could tell she was scared, probably on the run. She asked me about the Shadow Broker. She wanted to trade information in exchange for a safe place to hide."

"Hey, that's what that guy back on the Presidium talked about," Ratchet whispered to Kaidan. "You think there's some connection to all this?"

"Who knows?" the lieutenant whispered back. "Right now, we're still a bit in the dark."

"Would you happen to know where this quarian is located," Clank asked, being silent for most of the conversation.

The sound of the robot's voice nearly made Michel jump. "Oh! A synthetic. Sorry. I didn't see you there."

"It is alright, doctor," Clank assured her.

The doctor pulled a strand of hair to the back of her ear. "I put the quarian in contact with Fist. He's an agent for the Shadow Broker."

"Not anymore," Garrus said. "Now he works with Saren, and the Shadow Broker isn't too happy about it."

Michel looked to the turian in shock. "Fist betrayed the Shadow Broker? That's stupid, even for him. Saren must have made him quite the offer."

"Is it that big a deal if an agent of the Shadow Broker quits their job?" Ratchet asked, seemingly confused on the issue brought up.

Ashley came to Ratchet and answered, "Think about it. The Shadow Broker's the biggest of all information brokers in the galaxy. If an agent quits, it's like sending the Broker blackmail. You never become an agent to gather confidential information then quit. The only way out of it completely... is death."

"OK, I get it now. Thanks, Ashley," Ratchet said wide-eyed. Through the perspective of the Lombax, it seemed clear to him that the Milky Way is no less dangerous than Polaris.

"That quarian must have something Saren wants, something worth crossing the Shadow Broker to get," Garrus said.

Shepard turned from Garrus back to the doctor. "What else can you tell me about the quarian?"

"I'm not sure," Michel answered, head hung down as if trying to remember something important. "Like I said, she wanted to trade information for a place to hide. She didn't... Wait a minute..." She looked back up, eyes wide. "Geth—her information had something to do with the Geth."

"It seems the quarian mentioned may be linked to this Saren character," Clank remarked.

"I'm going to have to agree with the synthetic down there," Garrus said.

"His name's Clank," Ratchet said. "He's with us."

"I see. The quarian must indeed be able to link Saren to the Geth." The turian's attention focused back on the Alliance Commander. "There is no way the Council can ignore this!"

Shepard nodded. "Time we paid Fist a visit."

"This is your show, Shepard, but I want to bring Saren down as much as you do. I'm coming with you."

"Are you sure, sir?" Talwyn asked. "I mean, you did seem pretty serious with that case earlier, but why exactly do you want to bring Saren down?"

"Is this your typical squad, Shepard?" Garrus looked at Talwyn with a raised eye-ridge before eyeing Ratchet later.

"They're new to the squad, Officer," Shepard answered.

The turian nodded, turning back to the Commander. "Anyway, I couldn't find the proof I needed in my investigation, but I knew what was really going on. Saren is a traitor to the Council and a disgrace to my people!"

Garrus seemed very ambitious, and his knowledge may come useful in the near future. Shepard thought this could be good for the team. "Welcome aboard, Garrus."

"You know, we aren't the only one going after Fist," Garrus said. "The Shadow Broker hired a krogan bounty hunter named Wrex to take him out."

"Yeah," Ashley said. "We saw him at the bar."

"A krogan might come in handy," Shepard remarked, a look of approval to Ashley.

The turian officer crossed his arms. "Last I heard, he was at the C-Sec Academy."

"What's he doing there?" Kaidan asked.

"Fist accused him of making threats. We brought Wrex in for a little talk..." The way Garrus said 'talk' sounded like it was something different. "If you hurry, you can catch him at the Academy before he leaves."

Shepard nodded. "Move out."


	8. Investigation Part 2

**Lombax Effect—Chapter 8**

"So, you want to know about the turians? Didn't you see any before me?"

On their way to Citadel Security, or more commonly known as C-Sec, half of Shepard's team were talking with Garrus Vakarian, asking questions about his alien race the turians. Apparently, many years ago, turians were resembled as a race derived from birds, and were the first aliens humanity had ever encountered once they became capable enough to travel beyond their solar system.

"No," Ratchet answered. "Guess you could say we're not the kind of aliens many people see around here."

"Seems fair enough. So tell me about your own species. What are the Lombaxes like?" Garrus asked.

"Well, I don't really know much about them," Ratchet said, lifting a hand to rub the back of his head, then adjusting the pilot's helmet he wore. "I think I'm the only one alive right now."

"Oh." Ratchet's pace slowed slightly, but Garrus noticed it too, his pace matching the Lombax's. They soon jogged back to their usual walking speed, catching up with the other five ahead of them. "Well, then, can you tell me what you know? Are all Lombaxes like you?"

This brought a boost of enthusiasm for Ratchet. "Well, they can be short or tall. I think I'm one of the shorter ones, but I can't say for sure on that. Oh, and they're seen in different colours, too."

"Such as...?"

"Well, there's me in gold with brown stripes. A couple years back, I saw one in silver with red stripes."

"Actually, that's not all," Talwyn said to both Ratchet and Garrus. "Colours could be a representation of age or family. The colours could fade slowly when they get older. At least, that's what I know from my father back when I was a kid, and from what I researched on when I got older."

Garrus looked to Talwyn with curiosity. "Strange. That's not too different from my own race. You see, different facial mark patterns and colours can usually define a turian by their family or rank in society. Obviously, you can tell that any turian with a single dark blue line on both sides of the face would belong to the Vakarian family. So what about your race, Miss Apogee? What are you called again?"

"Markazians. We're very popular back in the Polaris galaxy, and we're also supposed to be very diplomatic people, especially in stuff like politics."

The turian nearly chuckled. "That sounds a bit like the asari, without the monogender characteristic."

"Asari? Monogendered?" Ratchet asked with slight shock.

"Of course. They're the blue-skinned women you see around here with the tentacle crests on their heads. You could see some have a violet-coloured tan. Asari are all female but they're very advanced in most major areas—political, military, economical, scientific... They're as smart as they are beautiful." Both Ratchet and Talwyn gave a blank look at Garrus. "Not that I'd be, well, interested in an asari right now..." He soon dropped his voice, as if he had turned the topic around and embarrassed himself.

"They must be very lively," Ratchet finally said.

"Yeah," Garrus said, no longer mortified. "They truly are."

Later, they all reached the elevator leading to C-Sec, with Garrus indicating the sign for the distinctive C-Sec emblem on a neon sign hung above them. The seven were silent, though they all felt they had to keep their senses sharp in case anything important happened.

"Binary Helix has settled out of court with a krogan group that had accused the generics corporation of fraud," a news broadcast sounded over the soft elevator music. "The krogan group had contracted Binary Helix to perform studies with a long-term goal of curing their generic sterilisation. The group later sued for a return of investment money when the study produced no viable results."

All were silent for only a few moments.

"What's a krogan?" Ratchet finally asked.

"You will know, Ratchet," Clank answered. "I saw two while I was just with the Commander and Chief."

"Just keep your eyes out for a big alien with the red head crest," Garrus advised. "As some humans would say, 'when you've see one krogan, you've seen them all'."

The elevator doors slid open, granting the seven entry to the C-Sec Academy.

"Right," Shepard said. "We've got a krogan to find. Keep your eyes peeled." And just by coincidence, the big alien in red was there with two humans in blue uniform, along with one turian in the same uniform as Garrus but with a black cap on his head.

One of the human officers was with the krogan face-to-face. "Witnesses saw you making threats in Fist's bar," he said. "Stay away from him."

With a tone this strict, about anyone would follow his suggestion. However, the red krogan did not approve, saying calmly, "I don't take orders from you."

"This is your only warning, Wrex," the officer said again, his tone slightly harsher.

"You should warn Fist. I will kill him." Again, Wrex was still calm, as if accepting a sort of challenge of wits.

The officer was now fed up with him. "You want me to arrest you?"

Wrex almost chuckled. "I want you to try." He seemed like he was having fun until he noticed a group of seven—three humans, a turian, a two-feet-tall synthetic and two aliens he didn't recognise—and walked over to them, his eyes trained on the brown-haired woman.

"Go on," the human C-Sec officer called out as Wrex walked away. "Get outta here." He then stalled off with his two partners.

"Do I know you, human?" Wrex said to Shepard as the eyes of Citadel Security had left him.

Garnet showed little fear—if there was any fear to begin with—and responded calmly, "My name's Shepard. I'm going after Fist. Thought you might want to come along."

"Hmm… Shepard. Commander Shepard… I've heard a lot about you." The krogan's expression hardened. "We're both warriors, Shepard. Out of respect, I'll give you fair warning. I'm going to kill Fist."

"Fist knows you're coming. We'll have a better chance if we all work together," Garrus said, noticing Wrex looking to him, Ratchet, Clank and Talwyn in a somewhat suspicious manner.

"Making friends with some aliens, Shepard? I didn't know you were the type." Wrex said, his voice kept low. For an alien brute that was said to be threatening, he was quite cool-headed. Wrex turned back to Shepard. "My people have a saying: seek the enemy of an enemy, and you find a friend."

"Glad to have you on the team, Wrex," Shepard said, offering a hand for him to shake.

He took it, shook it welcomingly and then flexed his neck. "Let's go. I hate to keep Fist waiting."

And so they all turned to the elevator they used before, making their direct trip to Chora's Den where Fist was expected to be found.

As the eight were heading down the red-lit alley towards Chora's Den, the krogan hunter was talking with Ratchet, Clank and Talwyn.

"So, where did you guys come from?" Wrex asked Ratchet and Talwyn.

"We're from another galaxy," Ratchet answered.

The krogan froze, surprise nearly overwhelming him. "Another galaxy? That's not possible."

"Well, it is with us," Talwyn said back.

"Then why are you here?"

Clank stepped towards his friends, looking up at Wrex. "We are on an important mission to apprehend a criminal. However, it seems that our mission had become tied to Commander Shepard's investigation—the one named Saren is allied with our arch enemy Doctor Nefarious."

Wrex looked to Shepard. "You sure you're not trying to make friends with the Geth, Shepard?"

"Very sure, Wrex. Clank's part of the team. If you have any problems with that, say so now."

Wrex said nothing. They all continued their short journey until they came through the field of blue, the high-pitched, whirring sounds of hovercars—or skycars as Shepard had explained to the Polaris aliens—passing by below the railings the only sounds that could be heard.

"Looks like it's shut down," Kaidan said, noticing the neon sign dimmed.

"Fist knows we're coming," Wrex said. He reached for his shotgun, looking for anyone who may be hiding behind the railings.

"How can you tell?" Ratchet asked.

The krogan didn't even exchange a glance at the Lombax. "A bounty hunter's instinct."

"OK," Shepard said. "We'll have a chance of getting through the bar if we all work together. Garrus, Ashley, Ratchet, cover us at the back. Wrex, work your way up and let us know of any enemy activity within Chora's Den. The rest of us, including me, will cover your six."

Wrex moved to the entrance to Chora's Den, holding his shotgun ready. Ashley, Garrus and Ratchet stayed behind as the rest proceeded slowly.

One bullet was fired past the entrance, followed quickly by a dozen more. Wrex peered through and fired his shotgun at an approaching thug. Clank snuck inside and hid behind a table on the left, watching for any other hostiles coming close. When one of them had his back to the robot, Clank quickly and quietly snuck up to him and zapped him at the ankle, almost electrocuting him to the point where he couldn't stand on his feet anymore.

Wrex soon decided to move in, followed by Shepard, Kaidan and Talwyn while Ratchet, Ashley and Garrus took over at Wrex's old position at the entrance. Garrus drew his pistol up at a thug standing on the elevated platform where the dancers used to be. The turian fired and his enemy was out like a light, tumbling down to the bar that encircled the centre of the club.

Ash, on the right, gunned down whoever dared to get in her way with her assault rifle, releasing the fire trigger whenever she felt the barrel begin to heat up at her hand. Talwyn covered her at the rear, watching for any more thugs and shooting them down with her laser pistol. As the lasers were not typical ammo like bullets, the hostile men who got hit would be pushed back by the first hit, and then knocked out on the second.

Garrus and Ratchet moved ahead. Ratchet had adjusted his pistol before shooting at another enemy at the bar, the laser knocking him out and then bouncing off to take down a second at the side.

Wrex and Shepard reached the other side first, reading the "VIPs only" sign that hung from the ceiling in the dim hallway. More thugs were there, but were a lot fewer than those who occupied the main club room.

The other six followed and caught up with the Commander and the bounty hunter. They heard shouts from two men, probably Fist's personal bodyguards. The two had guns loaded and aimed at Shepard and Wrex, but compared to the team of eight—including the two their guns were aimed at—they had become vulnerable, their chance to fight and survive later thrown outside.

Shepard, knowing these were the only guards she and the others hadn't shot down, lowered her pistol. "This would be a good time to find somewhere else to work."

The two guards didn't seem shocked, but their guns were lowered as they glanced at each other. "Yeah," one of them said. "Yeah, right. That's a good idea."

"Yeah, I never liked Fist anyway," the second guard agreed with his friend. Both quietly left walking past the team of eight.

"It would be better to just kill them," Wrex suggested once the guards were out of earshot.

"Why?" Ratchet asked in scrutiny. "That wouldn't get us anywhere."

"You haven't been in this galaxy for long, have you, boy?"

Ratchet looked down, as if too mortified to look at the big bounty hunter who made him feel small, feel much younger than his own age.

Suddenly, a voice called out across the hall. "I'm giving you one last chance, criminal! Where is Doctor Nefarious?"

"I don't know anything about him! Please, I only know about the other conspirator, Saren! Besides, I've already told you where to find her!"

"Yeah, that girl in the... uh, the hood and the... suit, for..."

"Oh, she's a quarian, for God's sake! Jesus, you're an idiot..."

"Hey!" the Commander called out far from the room. As she and the rest of her team approached Fist, the thug leader was instantly in a position that showed fright, seeing as how his bodyguards were nowhere to be found.

"Wait! Don't kill me! I surrender!" Fist called out, throwing an arm to cover his face.

Shepard had a pistol and aimed it at Fist, making sure he didn't plan any tricks against her. "Where's the quarian?"

As Fist was being negotiated, Ratchet, Clank and Talwyn were staring at the ten-foot tall person dressed in green at the side—their old ally Qwark.

"Qwark?" Ratchet said approaching him. "What are you doing here on the Citadel?"

"Hey, Ratchet," Polaris' president said cheerfully. "Glad to see you, Clank and Miss Apogee are here and looking well. By the way, have you seen all the new people around here? They've been given me some weird looks, staring at me like they haven't seen me before."

The three simultaneously slammed their palms against their shaking heads.

"He's no use to us now. Let me kill him," Wrex's gruff voice said. They all turned to the krogan in shock, but quickly relaxed as the red-clad alien was referring his comment to Fist instead of Qwark.

Fist, meanwhile, was as agitated as a dog that never stopped barking. "Wait, wait! I don't know where the quarian is but I know where you can find her. The quarian isn't here, said she'd only deal with the Shadow Broker himself!"

"Face to face?" Wrex questioned. "Impossible. Even I was hired through an agent."

"Does this sort of thing happen all the time here?" Qwark asked nervously.

The Lombax had had it. "Qwark, listen. You've got to be more careful around here. That thing you said about people staring at you? Of course they don't know you—you're from another galaxy. And why are you with that Fist guy anyway?"

"Well, gee… I-I don't know. I was just trying to get a place here in this galaxy, hoping I'd get known somehow. I mean I gotta start our somewhere, you know? And I could've sworn he was in league with Doctor Nefarious at one point or another—that's why I turned on him! Speaking of which, who the heck this Saren everyone's been talking about?"

"You've got to be kidding," Kaidan commented, joining the Polaris aliens. "If you're trying to get popular, then you're doing it the wrong way. You need to actually do something, like helping people or signing up for charity. Fist isn't a good guy at all, and I'm not surprised you didn't figure that out already."

"That's Qwark for you, LT," Ratchet said to the Lieutenant.

A shotgun was shot. Everyone turned to see where the gun had been fired, only to see Wrex holding a shotgun and Fist lying on the floor, motionless.

Ashley drew her assault rifle at Wrex. "Drop the gun, krogan," she said crossly.

"What are you doing?" Garrus nearly shouted in shock.

The krogan all but lowered his shotgun and looked at the large, shocked group and said casually, "The Shadow Broker paid me to kill him. I don't leave jobs half-done."

"We don't shoot unarmed prisoners," Shepard replied sternly. She showed the same frown she had shown to Garrus when he shot the thug holding Doctor Michel hostage.

"How many people died because of him?" Wrex asked her, ignoring her protest. "He brought this on himself. Besides, we have more pressing matters."

"That quarian's dead if we don't go now!" Garrus called. He was already heading out with his pistol held by his side. Ratchet followed suit and peered around, then quickly brought his head back as a bullet almost hit his ear.

"Whoa!"

"You alright, Ratchet?" the turian asked.

"Yeah. But that was a close one."

Chora's Den was now littered with over a dozen gunmen, most likely those from Fist's army of thugs who weren't at the club earlier. Now the clock was ticking for the eight to take them down and reach the endangered quarian. Things were about to get rough—very rough.


	9. Investigation Part 3

**Lombax Effect—Chapter 9**

As the team had expected from one flying bullet, more of Fist's thug army had come into Chora's Den to gun them down.

"Hey, can I come along too?" Qwark asked as he came beside Ratchet while the Lombax was taking cover.

"Qwark, this really isn't the best time," Ratchet said. "We've got guys shooting us from the bar."

"OK, maybe later. Anyway, I just wanted to let you know that I just got information about Nefarious and what he's planning. And here's the weird part: he's—"

"Team up with another bad guy who's got an army of robots trying to take over the galaxy." Ratchet finished the ten-foot tall man's sentence. "We figured that out already."

"No, there's more! After I was first invited to Fist, I was wondering around his office and found a video sent by some guy calling himself the Shadow Broker. There was stuff about Saren—not a lot for me to pay much attention to—until I heard the all too familiar voice from Doctor Nefarious."

"And you're sure that was him?"

"Oh, I'm sure. I could tell his voice from a million others. No joke."

Before Qwark could say another word, Shepard had her pistol out and aimed at a thug whom Qwark did not see. The shot had made the ten-foot-tall human-like alien jump.

"What was that?"

"Not paying attention to your surroundings, sir," the Commander said coolly to Qwark. "I appreciate you informing us what you found, but you can save the details for later. Right now, we need to take down those scumbags, get out of the bar and find the quarian!"

By the time, Qwark was told to shut up, everyone was working their way out of Chora's Den, step by step, as they shot down whoever was left of Fist's pack of bodyguards. Each of them foolishly dared themselves to take on their enemies, but the nine had the upper hand. One of the enemies was close to retreated out of the bar before he was biotically pulled back by Wrex, followed by a shotgun blast that sent the floating body to an ungraceful death.

They all made their way out, leaving behind a messy nightclub with a few dozen men lying on the ground motionless.

Shepard was in the lead, with her pistol still in hand, while the rest followed her around the path and up the stairs to the red-lit area they were in several minutes ago. Shepard then turned to the left and jogged up the stairs, reaching a door for her to open for the rest. As they pressed forward, they were in the alley Fist had mentioned. Everyone took cover as they saw four people downstairs.

The four consisted two lithe people in full-body armour painted yellow and black, a turian who was possibly wearing a mask, and one unidentifiable person who was wearing a unique suit covering the entire body, along with a hood joined at the helmet. Voices could be heard from Shepard's squad of eight.

"Did you bring it?" the masked turian asked the hooded figure.

The hooded, suited person stood still, asking, "Where's the Shadow Broker? Where's Fist?" The voice sounded female and held a sort of accent.

"They'll be here," the turian answered. As if believing he can get his way, he approached the suited female and stroked her left arm. "Where's the evidence," he asked slyly.

The female quickly swiped his hand off of her. "No way. The deal's off."

Because he was wearing the obscure mask, the turian was silent, but soon brought up a hand to signal the yellow-armoured figures behind him to approach the female. But before they took one step forwarded, they were attacked with a pair of grenades that detonated when they reached contact of their suits. The hooded female must have thrown them.

Shepard saw this as her opportunity to step in. She pointed to the turian and his two subordinates before coming out of cover and calling out, "Quarian! Take cover!"

The female, or quarian as Shepard had said, saw the Commander and her team of eight. Her face was concealed with a dark purple, glass visor, rendering her own face nearly impossible to see through. She found a large crate and hid behind it as the three who planned to attack her was getting peppered with bullets.

The fight was short, and the three perpetrators were out like a light.

"Fist set me up!" the quarian called out in anger as she came out of cover, looking to the group of nine who defended her. "I knew I couldn't trust him! I should have suspected it when I heard about his new 'partner' a few days ago."

From hearing this, Qwark was looking to the quarian in wonder. But then he looked down to the others who were staring at him squarely in the eye. "What?" he asked innocently.

Shepard ignored him for now; he already explained his role in this façade. She turned to the quarian. "Were you hurt in the fight?"

"I know how to look after myself—not that I don't appreciate the help," she answered. Her head turned from side to side slightly a few times, most likely taking in the people who took down the three who had attempted to kill her. "Who are you?" she asked with wonder.

"My name's Garnet Shepard," the Commander answered. "I'm looking for evidence to prove Saren's a traitor."

"Then I have a chance to repay you for saving my life," the young woman said, looking over the stark alley they were all in. "But not here. We need to go somewhere safe."

"The ambassador," Ratchet suggested. "He's been wanting something linking to Saren to show up soon. We can give the info to him at his office."

"Good idea, Serviceman," Shepard said, showing a small smile at their accomplishment. "Let's go there, see if Udina and Anderson are still around for the show."

The ten made their way back up to the Presidium. They were quiet along the way, but they soon reached the Embassies and at Udina's office. The door was open and Ambassador Udina had his back to the group with his armed folded.

"You're not making my life easy, Shepard," they heard him say, his voice holding ire and frustration. "Firefights in the Wards? An all-out assault on Chora's Den?" He turned around. "Do you know how many— " Before he said more, his gaze turned to the full-body suited, masked, hooded young woman Shepard and the others had brought along. "Who is this? A quarian? What are you up to, Shepard?"

"Making your day, Ambassador," Shepard said, armed behind her back and standing straight. "She has information linking Saren to the Geth."

Udina's scowled expression softened. "Really?" he asked the Commander. He turned towards the quarian once more. "Maybe you better start at the beginning, Miss...?"

"My name is Tali," the quarian answered kindly. "Tali'Zorah nar Rayya."

"We don't see many quarians here. Why did you leave the Flotilla?"

"I was on my Pilgrimage, my rite of passage into adulthood."

Most looked to each other in wonder, as if interested in what Tali was doing before her business against Saren came up. Talwyn look to her and said, "Maybe you could tell us what your Pilgrimage is about, give us an insight on what you do."

"Of course," the quarian said with a nod. "It is a tradition among my people. When we reach maturity, we leave the ships and our parents and our people behind. Alone, we search the stars, only returning to the Flotilla once we have discovered something of value. In this way, we prove ourselves worthy of adulthood."

The Commander seemed intrigued, seeing something in Tali's history as a unique part of quarian culture. "What kind of things do you look for," she asked. 

"It could be resources like food or fuel, or some type of useful technology, or even knowledge that will make life easier on the Flotilla," Tali answered. "Through our Pilgrimage, we prove that we will contribute to the community rather than being a burden on our limited resources."

As she finished, Shepard looked back to her large team. Some had their eyes wide open in amazement, while only a few others showed expressions that drew their eyebrows or eye ridges together.

"Tell us what you found," Shepard asked back to Tali.

She nodded, looking to the human ambassador and Captain Anderson who had just come into the office. "During my travels, I began hearing reports of Geth. Since they drove my people into exile, the Geth have never ventured beyond the Veil. I was curious. I tracked a patrol of Geth on an uncharted world. I waited for one to become separated from its unit, then I disabled it and removed its memory core."

"I thought the Geth fried their memory cores when they died, some kind of defence mechanism," Anderson commented.

"So," Ratchet began. "How exactly did you get the Geth's memory core out without any trouble?"

Tali looked to the Lombax. She was silent, but as her expression was difficult to read past her dark visor, Ratchet guessed she was either in confusion of his species or in wonder of why he was here with Shepard. The silence didn't last long when she began to answer Ratchet's question. "My people created the Geth. If you're quick, careful and lucky, small caches of data can sometimes be saved." She activated her omni-tool, keying in a few commands. "Most of the core is wiped clean, but I salvaged something from its audio banks."

"Eden Prime was a major victory," a male voice said. "The beacon has brought us one step closer to finding the Conduit."

Everyone was silent, all moved by the voice that spoke from the recording Tali played from her omni-tool.

"That's Saren's voice!" Anderson finally said. "This proves he was involved in the attack."

"He said Eden Prime 'brought him one step closer to finding the Conduit'," Shepard said. "Any idea what that means?"

The Normandy captain shook his head, but said, "The Conduit must have something to do with the beacon. Maybe it's some kind of Prothean technology... like a weapon."

"So, Prothean means ancient, right?" Ratchet asked.

"Actually," Talwyn began, "from what Shepard told me back on Eden Prime, Protheans were a type of people who lived in this galaxy about fifty thousand years from today. So, yeah, there could be something ancient going on."

"There could be," Shepard agreed as she nodded.

"Wait, there's more," Tali spoke up. "Saren wasn't working alone." She pressed some more buttons on her omni-tool.

"Eden Prime was a major victory. The beacon has brought us one step closer to finding the Conduit."

"And one step closer to the return of the Reapers," a new voice sounded, this one belonging to a woman. Judging by her voice, the female who spoke in the recording could fit a character with age and power.

Tali hit the "stop" button on her omni-tool, indicating the end of the recording.

"I don't recognise that other voice, the one talking about Reapers," Udina commented.

"Are they some kind of new alien species?" Shepard asked.

"According to the memory core," Tali explained, "the Reapers were a hyper-advanced machine race that existed fifty thousand years ago. The Reapers hunted the Protheans to total extinction and then they vanished. At least, that's what the Geth believe."

"Sounds a little far-fetched," the ambassador said.

Nearly everyone was thinking over what Tali had told them, but the Commander was on a different train of thought. She thought back to the vision she had gotten from the Prothean beacon on Eden Prime, trying to remember what she saw but also wishing she didn't have to; everything in the vision was gruesome to extreme levels. Then she thought back to Tali's information on the Reapers, how they came in the same time period as the Protheans and that the Reapers were responsible for the Prothean race vanishing fifty millennia ago.

_So, if the Reapers were there at the time_, she thought, _then that must be what the vision was trying to tell me._ She spoke up for the others to hear her opinion, "The vision on Eden Prime. I understand it now." All eyes—including Tali's from behind the glass visor—turned to her. "I saw the Protheans being wiped out by the Reapers."

"The Geth revere the Reapers as guards, the pinnacle of non-organic life," Tali said, extending her knowledge to the others. "And they believe Saren knows how to bring the Reapers back."

"The Council is just going to love this..." Udina said, determined.

Shepard shook her head. As much as she would agree with the human ambassador about their new discovery to be something interesting to tell the Citadel Council, she believed the issue about Saren allied with a sentient race of machines was more serious than most would care to believe. "The Reapers are a threat to every species in Citadel space. We have to tell them."

"No matter what they about the rest of this, those audio files prove Saren's a traitor," Anderson pointed out.

"The captain's right," Udina nodded in agreement to Anderson. "We need to present this to the Council right away."

"Hold on," Ratchet called out. "Saren's with Nefarious, but we just got something relating to Nefarious. Qwark has it with him right now." His gaze raised up to the man in question. "Do you?"

"Yes, of course," Qwark answered. "He's in lead with someone named Saren. Fist had it on this little thing." He brought out a black disc, a red light spinning around its circumference.

"That's an optical storage disc, Mr. Qwark," Tali said. "Or OSD for short. Can you play it?"

"Uh... no." Qwark's shoulders slumped in doubt.

Ratchet held his chin, as if an idea had hatched in his mind. "Hey, Qwark," he said. "Give the disc to Garrus. He knows all that kind of stuff."

Qwark looked back at the disc then back to the group. "Who's Garrus again?"

"Me," Garrus answered raising his talons in the air.

Knowing now, the ten-foot tall man gave the OSD to Garrus. The turian then put the disc into a slot on his omni-tool, keying in a few commands before an orange, rectangular screen appears above his omni-tool with a line moving as scratches just as the audio started playing.

"Saren!" the high, vicious-sounding voice of Nefarious called. "When do we reach our next destination?"

"We will be headed to a number of locations, Doctor," Saren's less than high voice replied. "However, I haven't decided where we will be going first. We need to stay away from Citadel space, for a start. After that, we begin our search for the Conduit."

"And what will be doing once we reached these destinations?" Nefarious asked.

"There is a particular task I have set up for you. There are a number of tasks we must do. I'd like you to learn about the Geth—understand how they work on the battlefield, how to communicate with them, know when they respond to you. There is also a particular group which needs to be infiltrated. And from what you have told me, this fits to one of your top abilities."

"Give me the name of this group, and I'll give you what you need, Saren." A beep sounded. The recording had ended.

"That will do," Udina said. "Now we have evidence for both halves of the case."

Garrus ejected the OSD from his omni-tool, passing it over to Shepard for her to give to the ambassador to present to the Council. Tali even sent the audio files she gathered from the Geth to him from omni-tool to another.

"We should get ready and hand these over the Council as soon as possible," Anderson said.

"What about her, the quarian?" Wrex asked, eyeing the young woman he spoke of.

"My name is Tali," she said sternly. "You saw me in the alley, Commander. You know what I can do. Let me come with you."

"I thought you were on your Pilgrimage," Shepard said, her eyebrows furrowed.

"The Pilgrimage proves we are willing to give of ourselves for the greater good. What does it say about me if I turn my back on this?" Tali saw the others with thoughtful expressions; she did have a logical point there. "Saren is a danger to the entire galaxy. My Pilgrimage can wait."

"It's probably a good idea to let her tag along, ma'am," Ash suggested. "She's got the know-how on the Geth better than all of us combined."

The gunnery chief was right. Shepard looked to Tali again, saying, "I'll take all the help I can get."

The quarian walked over to the Commander's side. "Thanks. You won't regret this."

"Anderson and I will go ahead to get things ready with the Council," Udina said. "Take a few minutes to collect yourself then meet us in the Tower." Still holding the OSD Qwark found, he and the Normandy captain headed out of the office, leaving the other ten for them to ponder over what they all learned from their rushed investigation.


End file.
